Bhubaneswar, August 23, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Two of the 24 crew members aboard the Panama-flagged cargo vessel MV Ocean-Winner have been rescued after the ship sank in the Bay of Bengal off the Odisha coast, while a joint search operation is underway for the remaining 22 crew members, the Indian Navy said on Sunday.
The vessel sank around 240 nautical miles off the Odisha coast on Saturday, triggering a large-scale search-and-rescue operation involving the Indian Navy, Indian Coast Guard and nearby merchant vessels.
MV Ocean-Winner had sailed from Paradip Port at around 10.30 p.m. on August 20 carrying approximately 1,700 tonnes of iron ore and was bound for Singapore. The vessel had 24 crew members — 20 Chinese nationals, three Myanmar nationals and one Bangladeshi national.
According to the Eastern Naval Command, an Indian Navy P8I aircraft was diverted from a surveillance mission after a distress alert concerning the vessel was received on August 22. The aircraft was operating approximately 700 km east of Visakhapatnam and coordinated with the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) at Sri Vijaya Puram.
The aircraft located a geographically dispersed liferaft and coordinated with the nearby merchant vessel MT AISOPOS, which was asked to assist in the rescue.
By late evening on August 22, MT AISOPOS had rescued two crew members from separate liferafts.
The MRCC at Sri Vijaya Puram received an alert at 11.48 a.m. on August 22 after contact with the vessel was lost. The request for search-and-rescue assistance was made by Victory Star Group Co. Ltd, the company operating the ship.
The vessel’s last known position was reported near 317 East Island Light, approximately 310 nautical miles away. The MRCC subsequently activated the Indian Search and Rescue (ISN) network and diverted MT AISOPOS to the area.
Around 8 p.m., the merchant vessel recovered the two survivors from separate liferafts.
The Indian Coast Guard and Navy then intensified the coordinated operation. Coast Guard vessels ICGS Varad and ICGS Anmol were deployed, while ICGS Vijit sailed from Sri Vijaya Puram to reinforce the search.
Other ships operating in the vicinity have also been alerted and asked to assist in locating the missing crew members.
The Indian Navy said it remains in close coordination with the Coast Guard as the search continues. The exact cause of the vessel’s sinking has not yet been established and remains under investigation.
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