A Ship Caught Fire In The Riau Islands Karimata Strait, 2 Crew Members From Vietnam Survived

Illustration of the search by the SAR Team (ANTARA)

BANGKA BELITUNG - The Bangka Belitung SAR team succeeded in evacuating Nguyen Van Trinh (41) and Vo Quang Viet (35), two Vietnamese crew members (ABK) from the AB Olivia ship. The evacuation was carried out in the Karimata Strait, Riau Islands (Kepri).

The two crew members suffered severe burns all over their bodies due to a fire that occurred on the AB Olivia ship while sailing from Singapore to Balikpapan.

"We from Pangkalpinang Kansar, together with Tanjung Pinang Kansar handled a ship accident, namely the AB Olivia ship that caught fire in the Karimata Strait, Riau Islands," said Head of Basarnas Babel, I Made Oka Astawa, on Tuesday, August 15.

According to I Made, the evacuation process was successfully carried out using the KN SAR Karna ship, which belongs to Basarnas Bangka Belitung.

"During the evacuation process, the two crew members suffered severe burns all over their bodies. The first victim, Nguyen Van Trinh, suffered burns with conditions reaching 90%. Meanwhile, the second victim, Vo Quang Viet, suffered burns to his body with conditions around 60%," he explained.

The two crew members who had an accident were evacuated to Pangkal Balam Port and then taken to the Siloam Pangkalpinang Hospital to receive medical treatment.

Previously, the Pangkalpinang Search and Relief Office received information about the dangerous condition of two crew members of the AB Olivia who suffered burns in the waters of the Karimata Strait on Tuesday, August 15, 2023, at 02.00 a.m. Western Indonesian Time (WIB).

The AB Olivia ship, which was en route from Singapore to Balikpapan, experienced a fire in the Bosun room, resulting in serious burns to two crew members.

After the captain of the ship requested evacuation assistance, the joint SAR team immediately moved to the meeting point in the waters of Rebo Beach using the KN SAR Karna Ship.

At 13.20 p.m. WIB, the combined SAR team arrived at the rendezvous point with the AB Olivia ship in Rebo waters. The team immediately made preparations and with the help of doctors from the Pangkal Balam Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (KKP), they succeeded in evacuating the victim and providing medical assistance.

The evacuation process lasted for about 2 hours until finally the victim was successfully transferred to the KN SAR Karna Ship.