Tragedy for US Navy in the South Pacific! Ten sailors missing, five injured after USS John S. McCain collides with merchant vessel near Singapore
The guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain crashed into a chemical tanker early Monday
The US guided-missile destroyer collided with merchant vessel Alnic MC east of Singapore and the Strait of Malacca, at 5.24am Monday
USS John S McCain, was left with a hole on the port side of its hull after colliding with the merchant vessel near Singapore
Ten sailors are missing and five were injured after the destroyer was involved in a collision with a 600-foot oil tanker on Monday morning
The destroyer which sustained damage to port side aft, or the left rear, of the ship ‘limped’ into the Changi Navy Base off the eastern coast of Singapore
As crew reportedly fought flooding in two crew berthings and the ‘shaft alley’, the John McCain sailed under its own power and headed to port after the collision
Search and rescue operations for missing personnel underway
The collision, between the 600feet long an oil tanker, Alnic MC, and the 505feet long John McCain is the second collision involving a ship from the Navy’s 7th Fleet in the Pacific in two months
The USS Fitzgerald smashed into Filipino cargo ship drowning seven crew, in June
Crewmen are seen on the deck of the USS John S McCain, which has a hole on the port side of its hull, as it is towed into the Changi Navy Base off the eastern coast of Singapore
Ten sailors are missing and five were injured after the USS John S McCain was involved in a collision with a 600-foot oil tanker on Monday morning, the Navy has said.
The collision between the US guided-missile destroyer and merchant vessel Alnic MC was reported at 5.24am local time.
The John McCain was underway east of Singapore and the Strait of Malacca, on its way to a routine port visit in Singapore after conducting a sensitive freedom of navigation operation last week by sailing near one of China’s man-made islands in the South China Sea.
Four of the injured sailors were medically evacuated. They were airlifted in a Singapore Navy helicopter to a hospital in Singapore with non-life threatening injuries.
The fifth sailor did not need further medical attention.
After the collision, the John McCain sailed under its own power and headed to port at Changi Naval Base in Singapore. There was no fuel or oil visible on the water’s surface near the ship just after the crash.
As crew reportedly fought flooding in two crew berthings and the ‘shaft alley’, the John McCain sailed under its own power and headed to port after the collision
Ten sailors were missing and five were injured early Monday after a Navy guided-missile destroyer collided with a merchant vessel near Singapore, officials said.
The John S. McCain and the chemical tanker Alnic MC crashed into each other east of Singapore in the South China Sea while the warship was traveling to Singapore at 6:24 a.m. local time Monday, the Navy said in a statement.
A Singaporean Navy helicopter evacuated four of the five injured sailors to a hospital in the city-state for treatment of injuries that weren’t considered life-threatening. The fifth sailor did not require further medical attention.
Initial reports indicated that the ship had damage to its left side near the back, according to the statement. A search for the missing sailors was underway.
President Trump responded to news of the collision, saying, “That’s too bad,” according to pool reports.
The collision, between the 600feet long an oil tanker, Alnic MC [photo], and the 505feet long John McCain is the second collision involving a ship from the Navy’s 7th Fleet in the Pacific in two month
Trump later tweeted, “Thoughts & prayers are w/ our @USNavy sailors aboard the #USSJohnSMcCain where search & rescue efforts are underway.”
The ship is named for Sen. John McCain’s grandfather and father, who both were Navy admirals.
“Cindy & I are keeping America’s sailors aboard the USS John S. McCain in our prayers tonight — appreciate the work of search & rescue crews,” McCain, an Arizona Republican and retired Navy captain, tweeted.
The guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain from the South Pacific fleet crashed into a chemical tanker early Monday
Singapore’s government said no crew were injured on the Liberian-flagged Alnic, which sustained damage to a compartment at the front of the ship some 23 feet above its waterline.
The crash at sea is the second accident involving a ship from the Navy’s 7th Fleet in the Pacific in two months. The destroyer Fitzgerald collided with a freighter off the coast of Japan on June 17, leaving seven sailors dead.
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