On May 16, the fishing vessel ‘Lupen Yuanyu 028’ belonging to the Chinese authorities, which set sail from Cape Town, South Africa to Busan, South Korea, capsized in the deep seas in the Australian Search And Rescue (SAR) Zone, southwest of Australia. Its crew of 39 included 17 Chinese, 17 Indonesian and five Philippine nationals.
The tragedy made headlines in the international media. Chinese President Xi Jinping told the country’s authorities to take every possible step to rescue any surviving sailors. Along with this, China also requested Sri Lanka to join the rescue operation, but there were no naval vessels near that area at the time when the request was made.
International conventions
Sri Lanka is a party to the international conventions adopted to save the lives of sailors and vessels in distress at sea. Accordingly, the Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Centre established at the Naval Headquarters, Colombo, should coordinate the steps to provide relief to the maritime and fishing community in distress in the SAR Zone belonging to Sri Lanka as well as in the adjacent areas in international waters.
According to the instructions of the Commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera, the Sri Lanka Navy’s deep sea attack ship Vijayabahu, along with a Navy diving team, were despatched to the location where the Chinese fishing vessel was last reported. This was a three-day journey.
 Retrieving some of the bodies |
The maritime SAR centres of the regional (Indian Ocean) countries had already started SAR operations. The Vijayabahu set out to join the international mission. When the Vijayabahu arrived it found the wrecked vessel in a very turbulent environment. The rescue teams onboard saw the wrecked vessel ‘Lupen Yuanyu’ 028 floating upside down in rough seas.
Reports say that the sea was violent and the roughness of the still deep sea was terrifying. Moreover, there was no clear way to carry out rescue operations on the overturned vessel in such turbulent waters. Debris was strewn around the overturned boat and the rescue team had a tough mission ahead of them. Accepting the challenge, the frogmen began their mission to find any crew members who may have been still trapped inside the capsized fishing vessel.
Due to poor light conditions, the dive team penetrated the darkness and entered the overturned vessel. Navy divers first found two dead bodies in the captain’s cabin and the crew quarters. The two highly decomposed bodies were taken out of the vessel. The rescue team proceeded to hand over the two dead bodies to the Chinese tug De Tian which had just arrived at the scene.
Divers found 12 more bodies trapped inside the vessel. It was a difficult three-day operation and they were in a life and death situation while diving in the dark and cold deep sea.
The 12 bodies were found trapped inside the crew quarters and other compartments of the fishing vessel. The bodies were so badly decomposed that they could not be recovered at once. In this underwater operation in the dark sea, recovering bodies was a risk in every way. In particular, it could have caused a serious risk to the divers’ health. The Navy diving team mapped the locations of the bodies inside the vessel. Within 24 hours of completing that difficult diving operation, the ‘Lupen Yuanyu’ 028 completely sank in the deep sea.
After completing the diving mission, the Navy team started its journey back to the Colombo Port on May 22.
By now, the Chinese ship ‘MV Shandong De Long’ had reached the zone with Chinese divers who specialised in this type of mission. The Sri Lanka Navy provided the diving team including the captain of the Chinese ship with a detailed explanation of the places where the dead bodies are located, including where divers can safely enter and exit the wrecked fishing vessel.
The operation attracted world attention and the Sri Lankan Navy was highly praised. The international media reported that the operation carried out by the Sri Lanka Navy at China’s request was a very risky undertaking.
 SLN officers brief the captain and divers on board the MV Shandong De Long |
At the end of the operation, the Chinese Government honoured the nine sailors of the Sri Lanka Navy ship Vijayabahu and the diving team. They were feted at the Shangri-La Hotel, Colombo on June 6 by China’s Ambassador to Sri Lanka Qi Zhenhong and Chief of Presidential Staff and Senior Advisor to the President on National Security Sagala Ratnayake.
Ambassador Zhenhong thanked Defence Minister and President Ranil Wickremesinghe for his decisive and timely decision to intervene and provide full support to the rescue operation. The Ambassador particularly commended the Ministry of Defence, the Armed Forces and all the officers and sailors of the Vijayabahu of the Sri Lanka Navy for their swift response and their assistance despite the long distance. He said China pays sincere tribute to the nine brave divers and all countries and agencies involved in the SAR operation for their timely help.
Special friendship
“This is not just a joint action to fulfil international responsibilities. It is a glorious mission to demonstrate the spirit of international humanitarianism. Only the mercy of humanity emerged from the merciless sea. The Chinese Government, the Chinese people and all the families of the crew members of the shipwrecked vessel will always remember this special friendship.
Through this search and rescue operation, the Sri Lankan Government, people and military once again warmly showed their brotherly friendship towards China. We deeply feel that every country and every nation belongs to the global village where we share joys and sorrows. At a time of emerging global risks and challenges, cooperation and understanding is the only right path. Let’s join hands to build a community with a shared future for humanity,” Ambassador Qi Zhenhong said.
Presidential Chief of Staff Sagala Ratnayake recalled that when he informed President Wickremesinghe about China’s request, the President had no hesitation in ordering the rescue mission. He praised the Navy for its daring mission amid turbulent seas. Navy Chief Priyantha Perera, a deep sea diver himself, described the mission in detail.
Australian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Paul Stevens, diplomatic officers of the Chinese Embassy in Sri Lanka, Transport, Highways and Media Minister Dr. Bandula Gunawardena, State Minister of Foreign Affairs Taraka Balasuriya, Chief of Defence Staff General Shavendra Silva, Commander of the Navy Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera, Deputy Chief of Naval Staff and Director General Operations were present. Nearly 300 dignitaries including Rear Admiral Pradeep Ratnayake, Commander of the Vijayabahu and its entire crew were present.