August 15 Super Dvora tragedy: Search continues for missing officer’s body
Navy headquarters yesterday said it was continuing the search for Lt. Thilina Udayapriya, second-in-command of the Super Dvora Mark III Fast Attack Craft (FAC), which sank in the seas off Angulana, on 15 August, 2026. Of the 12-member crew, 11 were rescued but so far SLN efforts to locate the missing officer’s body had failed, […]
On 15 August 2026, the Super Dvora Mark III Fast Attack Craft (FAC) met with a tragic fate off the coast of Angulana. The vessel, which had recently been delivered from Israel post-war, was carrying a crew of 12. Remarkably, 11 of these crew members were successfully rescued by the Sri Lankan Navy's SLN efforts. However, their search for the missing Lieutenant Thilina Udayapriya, the second-in-command of the Super Dvora, has yet to yield results.
The disaster occurred amidst challenging weather and treacherous sea conditions. The wreckage of the Super Dvora is now located near Bambalapitiya. Initially, the tragedy was attributed to a collision with a shipwreck named MV Thermopylae Sierra, which had itself sunk in August 2012. Despite being clearly marked on the nautical chart or hydrographic chart, the Super Dvora ended up colliding with this submerged vessel.
In the aftermath, authorities were criticized for failing to place a buoy at the site of the collision to warn other maritime traffic. Public appeals had been made for this safety measure, but it was overlooked. The ongoing salvage operation of the Super Dvora, now off Bambalapitiya, continues under challenging circumstances.
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.
