The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) has deployed three of its ships for a search-and-rescue operation after a Panama-flagged bulk carrier, M.V. Ocean Winner, sank in the Bay of Bengal, about 240 nautical miles from the Paradip coast of Odisha, on Saturday (August 22, 2026). The vessel was carrying 24 crew members, comprising 20 Chinese, three Myanmarese, and one Bangladeshi national.
The ICG’s Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) in Sri Vijaya Puram received information about the loss of communication with the vessel at 1148 hours, prompting a request for search and rescue assistance. The ship was transporting iron ore from Odisha to Singapore when the incident occurred. The ICG and the Indian Navy have launched the rescue operation, and three ICG ships, including ‘Varad’, ‘Anmol’, and ‘Vijit’, have been deployed to aid in the search-and-rescue efforts.
Additionally, a commercial vessel, MT Aisopos, was diverted to search for the vessel or liferafts and render assistance. At around 2000 hours, MT Aisopos recovered two survivors from two liferafts. The search-and-rescue operation is ongoing, with the ICG working to locate the remaining crew members.
