4 Crew Members Injured Including 1 Indian Seafarer As Projectile Hits VLCC In Persian Gulf

A projectile hit the Liberia-flagged VLCC MT Fujairah Energy in the Persian Gulf on November 10, injuring 4 crew members, including 1 Indian seafarer.

Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal said in a post on X that the tanker was sailing from Al Ruwais to Dubai when it was hit.

The vessel had 6 Indian seafarers on board. The injured Indian seafarer suffered minor injuries and has been taken ashore for further medical examination.

The remaining 18 crew members, including the other 5 Indian seafarers, are safe and accounted for.

Details on the condition of the other 3 injured crew members were not immediately available.

Sonowal said the government is continuously monitoring the situation and remains in close contact with the ship management company to ensure the security, medical care and wellbeing of the seafarers.

According to reports, 37 ships were attacked in and around the Strait of Hormuz in October, the highest monthly total since the war began. Ten more attacks have been recorded in November so far.

Since the conflict began on February 28, 25 seafarers have lost their lives in and around the Strait of Hormuz, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) said when its 138th Council session in London wrapped up on November 6.

The most recent of these deaths came after the tanker Velos Sapphire was attacked on November 5.

IMO has verified at least 130 attacks on commercial vessels in the region, up from 70 attacks and 19 seafarer deaths at the six-month mark of the conflict.

Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez said that seafarers are still being killed or seriously injured, abandoned and denied repatriation, with some left without water, food and medical care.

The Council said that seafarers must be protected whatever their nationality or location, and urged member states to refrain from unlawful measures that endanger seafarers and international shipping. It also condemned the Houthi attacks on merchant ships in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandeb, along with Russia’s attacks on seafarers, ships and ports in the Black Sea.

India’s Ministry of External Affairs said on November 3 that the country had lost 23 nationals in the ongoing West Asia conflict, including 15 Indian seafarers, up from 22 and 14 respectively on October 28.

The ministry also said that 5 Indian nationals have been killed in attacks on commercial shipping in the Black Sea region, while 2 others remain missing.

An Indian seafarer was killed earlier this month when the Indian-flagged dhow Al Jusufi was struck near Oman, while 13 others were rescued.

References: IMO, Press Trust of India, ANI, Gulf News, ETV Bharat, Free Press Journal, Seatrade Maritime, Cyprus Shipping News