Four Dead in Naval Collision
by Ma Nguyen Tong
14-1-2003
Singapore said that four of its sailors died after their anti-submarine vessel was hit by a merchant ship. The RSS Courageous, a 500-ton patrol boat, was badly damaged in the incident involving a Dutch-owned cargo ship off Malaysia's southern coast late on January 3, 2003. Rescue workers recovered the body of a third Singaporean naval seawoman following what has been described as the worst naval incident in modern Singapore's history. The fourth sailor was still missing, after the collision between a patrol boat and the container ship. Her body was never found and authorities eventually called off the search.
"Singaporeans must prepare for the worst," he said in a statement.
The bodies of 1st Sergeant Seah Ai Leng, 25, Sergeant Heng Sock Ling, 24, and Corporal Goh Hui Leng, 22, were found over the following weekend. Divers found the body of Goh Hui Leng lodged between the bunks on the vessel, and the bodies of the other two women were washed up on the Indonesian resort of Bintan, south-east of Singapore.
Hopes fade
Officials said they held little hope of finding the fourth sailor, 2nd Sergeant Chua Bee Lin, alive.
Eight of the warship's 44 crew members suffered minor injuries and three were taken to a hospital for observation, the defence ministry said. Part of the vessel's rear section sheared off in the collision with the ANL Indonesia, a 52,000-ton cargo ship owned by P&O Nedlloyd. Port authorities towed the Courageous to Singapore's Changi Naval Base in order to drain its flooded compartments and search for the missing women in the wreckage. Divers searched the flooded compartments during the journey.
"The collision was the most terrible accident," Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Tony Tan said after inspecting the damaged ship.
"In terms of the possible loss of life, this is the largest loss of life from a single accident that the RSN (Republic of Singapore Navy) has encountered so far," he said.
"The rescue team gained access to the compartment where the servicewomen were sleeping. The divers found one body lodged between the bunks," Mr Tan said in the statement. The island state's navy chief, Lui Tuck Yew, said the accident was the worst in Singapore's naval history. No injuries were reported aboard the South Korea-bound ANL Indonesia, which was towed to a Singapore's Eastern Anchorage, pending further investigations.
The accident occurred minutes before midnight about one nautical mile north of Pedra Branca, an islet claimed by both Singapore and Malaysia. Pedra Branca lies off peninsular Malaysia's southern coast, strategically situated at the eastern entrance of the Singapore Strait. Singapore says the incident took place in Singaporean waters and should not have any effect on relations with Malaysia. The Straits of Malacca and the Singapore Strait are the most crowded shipping lanes in the world. The after end of the 500-ton patrol boat sheared off when the 52,000-ton cargo ship hit it.
The RSS Courageous, commissioned in 1996, is one of six submarine hunters in Singapore's navy fleet.
Singapore calls off search for missing servicewoman
Singapore eventually called off a search for the missing sailor, 10 days after the accident killed at least three others. Armed forces chief Lim Chuan Poh said in a statement January 14 that Singapore had decided to end the search for Chua "after seeking the advice of forensic experts."
Authorities in Medan, North Sumatra said they would continue to look for her body. Chua's backpack and the bodies of two of the sailors killed in the accident were found washed ashore on the nearby Bintan island. More than 100 Indonesian navy and police personnel were involved in the operation, local police chief Satman Purba said.