Operators of the Sea Areas A1 and A2 GMDSS Vanino Coast Stations of the FSUE “Rosmorport” Vanino Branch helped to rescue the crew of the sinking vessel in the Tatar Strait.

On February 23, 2023, the operator of the Vanino Coast Stations of GMDSS of the Vanino Branch received a call of distress from the vessel YONG XING-56 (flag of the People's Republic of China), proceeding to the seaport of Vanino with bulk cargo.

The vessel in the Tatar Strait near the southern edge of the ice struck a dock in the hull below the waterline, between the forepeak and hold No. 1, which led to an intensive intake of seawater into these compartments.

The operator of the GMDSS of the Vanino Branch immediately reported by phone to the operator on duty and the captain-coordinator of the Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk marine rescue sub-center of the Federal State Budgetary Institution "AMP Sakhalin, Kuril and Kamchatka".

In accordance with the established procedures for emergency rescue operations, the operator on duty at the Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Interregional Specialized Postal Center entrusted the coordination of the rescue operation to the crew of the Sakhalin-8 diesel-electric vessel, which was closest to the emergency situation.

Upon arrival at the scene of the accident, the crew of the Sakhalin-8 vessel took on board the crew of the sinking vessel in the number of 21 people who, at the time of the start of the rescue operation, were on the ice of the Tatar Strait 6 nautical miles from Cape Sandy.

Thanks to the prompt and clear actions of the operators of the GMDSS of the Vanino Branch in coordination with emergency rescue units, all crew members of the emergency motor ship YONG XING-56 were rescued and brought safely to the seaport of Vanino.

The rescue vessel Otto Schmidt, which came up from the Korsakov seaport, performed emergency rescue work to seal the underwater hole and drain the flooded compartments from the seawater to bring the vessel into seaworthy condition. However, despite all the attempts of emergency rescue units to keep the buoyancy of the vessel, on March 1, the emergency motor ship YONG XING-56 sank at a depth of 250 meters beyond the border of the territorial waters of the Russian Federation.