Tragedy off Angulana: Super Dvora collided with ‘marked’ sunken merchant vessel
By Shamindra Ferdinando The Fast Attack Craft (FAC) that sank off Angulana on Saturday (15) has collided with a sunken ship. The Island learns that MV Thermopylae Sierra sank in August 2012 during a monsoon storm. The ill-fated Super Dvora Mk III has gone over the ship wreck in spite of it being clearly demarcated […]
Tragedy struck off the coast of Angulana when the Super Dvora Mk III, an Israeli-built Fast Attack Craft (FAC), collided with a sunken merchant vessel. The Island reports that the FAC sank after colliding with the MV Thermopylae Sierra, a Cyprus-flagged 155-meter bulk carrier that had been abandoned off the west coast since 2012.
The incident occurred three nautical miles off Angulana coast in Moratuwa, as the Super Dvora Mk III returned from a routine patrol. Despite the sunken ship being clearly marked on the nautical chart, the vessel's crew failed to heed the warning. Of the 12 crew members, 11 were rescued, while the second-in-command tragically lost his life.
The commanding officer was among those saved during a joint Navy/Police rescue operation. Authorities had been criticized for not marking the site with a buoy to warn maritime traffic, as repeatedly demanded by the local community. The Navy has appointed a panel of experts to conduct a preliminary inquiry into the incident, which could potentially explore the possibility of negligence on the part of the crew.
Written by urgent.news from The Island Sri Lanka's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
