A major search and rescue operation is underway in the Sea of Marmara after a Turkish general cargo ship is believed to have sunk following a collision with a chemical tanker early on Wednesday. Ten crewmembers remain missing.

The 3,970 dwt Tugberk Imamoglu collided with the 3,338 dwt chemical tanker Alsu approximately 18 nautical miles south of Silivri, west of Istanbul, shortly after 03.00 local time. The Sea of Marmara is one of the world's busiest enclosed waterways, carrying heavy domestic and international traffic between the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus, and linking Black Sea ports with the Mediterranean. The incident occurred within Turkey's VTS-monitored traffic corridor for the Istanbul Strait approaches, a zone where vessel movements are closely regulated.

According to Turkey's maritime authorities, an emergency signal from the Tugberk Imamoglu's EPIRB was received at 03.26. The master of the Alsu subsequently contacted vessel traffic services at 03.41 to report that his vessel had collided with an unidentified ship at around 03.15.

Repeated radio and telephone attempts to reach the Tugberk Imamoglu and its 10 crewmembers have failed, and authorities now believe the vessel has sunk. An EPIRB (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon) automatically or manually transmits a distress signal to satellites, allowing rescue authorities to fix a vessel's position even when its crew cannot communicate. The fact that the signal was registered within minutes of the reported collision indicates the beacon functioned as designed.

Fourteen maritime search and rescue units, a helicopter and the Alsu are participating in the operation. Survival equipment belonging to the missing vessel, including its free-fall lifeboat, has been located in the water, but no crewmembers had been found at the time of writing. A free-fall lifeboat is launched by dropping it stern-first from a stern ramp, and its presence floating unoccupied suggests it was deployed or torn free during the sinking, though the circumstances remain unconfirmed.

The Tugberk Imamoglu, built in 1990 and owned by Istanbul-based Zeybe Denizcilik, was sailing from Iskenderun towards Karadeniz Eregli. At 35 years old, the vessel is representative of the ageing segment of the small general cargo fleet that continues to operate in Turkish coastal trade. Its route from Iskenderun, on the Mediterranean, to Karadeniz Eregli, on the Black Sea, is a common leg through the Turkish Straits system.

The Alsu, built in 2021 and owned by Ozpulathane Deniz Tasimaciligi, was travelling from Kocaeli to Aliaga. Initial inspections found no visible damage to the tanker. As a chemical tanker involved in a collision with loss of life feared, the vessel and its crew can expect to be detained for investigation under Turkey's casualty inquiry procedures, which typically involve the maritime directorate and, depending on findings, referral under the Turkish Commercial Code and international casualty investigation guidelines. Collision investigations in Turkish waters also feed into Istanbul's PSC regime, and a serious casualty of this kind will draw scrutiny of both vessels' watchkeeping, manning and bridge resource management in the pre-dawn hours.

Source: Splash247