The Da Nang authorities held a municipal-level rescue practice at the Tho Quang Fishing Wharf in Son Tra District on Saturday.

Vehicles at the rescue practice

In a hypothetical situation, at 9:00 am on Saturday, due to strong winds and high waves, the oil tanker Duy Thinh lost control and collided with two fishing boats anchored at the Tho Quang Fishing Wharf while it tried to approach the venue to refuel. In which, one fishing boat was punctured, causing the ship's side broken and its cabin collapsed.

The unexpected situation led to the risk of shipwreck and secondary fire and explosion, which seriously affected the environment and security situation in the locality and caused loss of life and property of people.

The oil tanker quickly informed the Management Board of the Tho Quang Fishing Port and Wharf, and at the same time, raised the siren to call for nearby ships not to enter the incident area.

Immediately, the Management Board of the Tho Quang Fishing Port and Wharf and the Son Tra Border Guard Station used canoes, loudspeakers, and portable batteries to guide fishing boats anchored in the incident area to move to a safer place. At the same time, the search and rescue work was maintained until professional forces arrive.

After receiving SOS message, the municipal authorities immediately mobilised many forces to participate in the search and rescue work, including the fire prevention and fighting and rescue police forces at municipal and district levels, police, the city’s emergency centre, crew 1 under the Traffic Police Department of the Ministry of Public Security, and the Da Nang branch of the Viet Nam Environmental Incident Response Centre.

Colonel Phan Van Dung, Deputy Director of the Da Nang Department of Police, said that the purpose of the drill was to assess the operational capabilities of the firefighting and rescue forces, the actual efficiency of fire-fighting vehicles and equipment, and the communication system and logistics services for firefighting and rescue work at agencies and units in the city when participating in solving serious fire and explosion incidents.

He added the practice provided the good opportunity for fire prevention and fighting forces at grassroots level, staff of the Management Board of the Tho Quang Fishing Port and Wharf, the owners of fishing boats and fishermen to have a correct and realistic perception of the danger of fire and explosion incidents.

This helped strengthen the rhythmical and synchronous cooperation among relevant forces in deploying search, rescue and firefighting activities, improving command and control skills, enhancing search and rescue tactics, and promoting proficient use of fire-fighting vehicles and equipment.

Below are some photos from the search and rescue drill.

After the collision, crewmembers and fishermen on the oil tanker in distress quickly jumped into the sea to wait for the authorities to come to the rescue. Photo: LE HUNG

The Management Board of the Tho Quang Fishing Port and Wharf quickly used canoes to rescue those in distress. Photo: LE HUNG

The rescue forces approached the ship in distress to rescue trapped people. Photo: LE HUNG

The rescue forces brought those in distress to shore. Photo: LE HUNG

The medical team gave first aid to the victims before taking them to the hospital for monitoring their health. Photo: LE HUNG

After towing the ship in distress to shore, the fire prevention and fighting and rescue police forcea approached the area inside the ship to search and rescue trapped people. Photo: LE HUNG

At the same time, the functional forces continued to search for the victims still at sea. Photo: LE HUNG

Buoys were installed around the area of ​​the ship in distress to prevent oil spills. Photo: LE HUNG

The fire prevention and fighting and rescue police forces sprayed water and foam to extinguish the fire from the ship in distress. Photo: LE HUNG

Reporting by LE HUNG - Translating by M.DUNG