Dubai supply ship sinks off Qatar, kills one

A Dubai-based supply ship capsized off the Qatari coast killing one person on Tuesday. A further 29 people are still reported missing.

Five people, including the captain, were rescued after the vessel with 35 people on board sunk near the Doha Channel, about 10 nautical miles off the coast, according to a report in The Peninsula.

Search operations were launched by the coast guard, navy and port authorities immediately after the incident, which happened around 6.30am. Helicopters were also employed to scour the sea looking for survivors.

Bad weather is suspected to have caused the ship to sink, but, exact reasons have yet to be determined.

A statement by the Ministry of Interior said: “The rescue team, including the divers, fished out one body and rescued five persons.”

The paper quoted unnamed sources at Doha Port who said the ship sunk just after officials had given it permission to enter the port.

“It was very strange. Shortly after we gave the entry permission to the vessel, we received a message from another ship that this ship was sinking. We immediately tried to reach them, but in vain”, the source said.

The vessel Demas Victory belonged to UAE-based Mid Gulf Offshore Ship Chartering. Company officials were not available for comment.

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