Tanker Detained After Collision Causes Death Of Seafarers

A 2011-built products tanker named the Petite Soeur is being held in the Philippines currently, following its collision with a hopper dredge, which is Sierra Leone.

The Marshall Islands-registered vessel operates in the Norden tanker pool. It is managed by Norden Synergy Ship Management.

Per the Philippine Coast Guard, two crew members — a Chinese and Filipino — onboard the dredge, dubbed the M/V Hong Hai, passed away in the collision. The crew member from China drowned.

The Filipino, the vessel’s safety officer, subsequently lost his life after suffering head injuries. This happened after he and 15 other members of the crew were rescued by a vessel that belonged to the Good Samaritan. Three other members of the Chinese crew are missing.

The collision occurred in the waters between Mariveles, Bataan, and Corregidor Island around 9.30 p.m. Friday, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said.

Local media reports quote Rear Adm. Armand Balilo (a PCG spokesperson) as saying that a collision between the 140-meter dredge and the 183-meter tanker made the dredge submerge while the tanker remained unimpaired.

Per the Equasis database, the 2019-constructed dredge is owned by Singapore’s HF Marine and managed by DFS Maritime Services Sdn Bhd, based in Malaysia.

The Philippine Coast Guard reported that all 21 crew members of the Petite Soeur were in stable physical conditions. While the vessel appeared unimpaired, the PCG hasn’t completely ruled out the chances of spill from the vessel, which, as of Saturday, was held at the Port of Mariveles while the investigations progressed.

References: Ship and Bunker, Marine Log