LADY SANDRA

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Tanker split in two, crew rescued

On March 25, 2020, the 'Lady Sandra' suffered severe damage and water ingress southeast of Malta in a storm with swells of four to five meters and wind speeds of 50 knots. There was a crew of three on bord, two Egyptians and one Romanian. They issued a mayday call at 9.32 p.m. which was received by the Rescue Coordination Centre Malta situated at the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) Operation Centre at Luqa Barracks. The AFM responded to the distress call in bunkering area three. They deployed an SAR vessel and a helicopter to the location of the tanker, some 13 nautical miles East-Northeast from Malta. The AFM 'Melita I', upon arriving, discovered that the unloaded ship had split amidships. Both halves were drifting in the sea at that time. The three crew members were found in the water after having abandoned ship. The life raft had been ruptured. The men were transferred on the AFM vessel and brought safely to Hay Wharf Base. Medical assistance was not required, and the Immigration Unit from the Malta Police Force were called in for further assistance. The difficult rescue mission was the result of coordination between the AFM's Rescue Coordination Centre, the AFM assets, as well as other ships in the area. At 1505 hrs, vessels in vicinity reported to Valletta VTS that bow of LADY SANDRA is still afloat. On March 26 at 3.05 p.m. the bow was still seen afloat. At 3.30 p.m. a tanker in the vicinity reported that the aft part was no longer to be seen. The tank barge was seen at Istanbul on Feb 6 after she crossed the Bosphorus Northwards on Jan 31 after having spent 50 days at Sulina, where she had berthed on Dec 10, 2019. Reports with photos: https://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/101296/rough_seas_break_tanker_in_two_crew_rescued_by_armed_forces_of_malta#.Xn0Js_RCfIU https://maltashipnews.com/2020/03/26/casualties-inland-tanker-lady-sandra-25-03-2020/?fbclid=IwAR1bD_03_kChplpJH5Q14ndNBeVw4e2cexEM9MigaCR1r-XxQmcpIOIV5aY http://www.maltashipphotos.com/productfile.asp?ProductID1=17077&PRODUCTCAT1=Yachts