U.S Navy ship collides with oil tanker as 10 sailors go missing

Ten sailors are missing after a United States warship collided with an oil tanker east of Singapore on Monday, the U.S. Navy said.

According to the Navy, this is a second accident involving U.S. Navy destroyers in Asian waters in little more than two months. 

The guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain collided with the merchant vessel Alnic MC before dawn while heading to Singapore for a routine port call, the Navy said in a statement. 

“Initial reports indicate John S. McCain sustained damage to her port side aft,” the Navy said. 

“There are currently 10 sailors missing and five injured.” Four of the injured were evacuated by helicopter to a hospital in Singapore with non-life threatening injuries, while the fifth needed no further treatment, it said. 

Collisions between warships and other large vessels are extremely rare, with naval historians going back more than 50 years to find a similar previous incident. 

A search-and-rescue mission was under way for the sailors missing from the USS John S. McCain involving Singaporean ships, helicopters and tug boats, as well as U.S. Navy aircraft. The warship was currently sailing under its own power toward Singapore’s Changi Naval Base and there was no sign of fuel or oil visible near the ship, the Navy said. 

The Alnic MC is a Liberian-flagged, 183 metre-long oil or chemical tanker of 50,760 deadweight tonnes, according to shipping data in Media. 

An Alnic crew member told Media by telephone there was no oil spill from the tanker, which was carrying almost 12,000 tonnes of fuel oil from Taiwan to discharge in Singapore. 

“We have not discharged the tanker yet,” said the crew member, who asked not to be identified. 

“We are proceeding to Raffles Reserved Anchorage, where the owners will investigate the matter. There was some damage to the valve but no oil spill.” 

President Trump's tweet below;

Thoughts & prayers are w/ our @USNavy sailors aboard the #USSJohnSMcCain where search & rescue efforts are underway. https://t.co/DQU0zTRXNU

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 21, 2017