At least 31 people are missing after a military vessel capsized overnight in the Gulf of Thailand, off Bang Saphan (south), a spokesman for the Royal Navy said on Monday.
“We are still looking for 31” of HTMS Sukhothai’s 106 crew, Admiral Pogkrong Montradpalin said.
Following the “high tide”, the electrical system of the patrol corvette was damaged, to the point of causing the shutdown of the machines ensuring its operation, he explained.
The crew “lost control” of the ship, which sank shortly after midnight (5 p.m. GMT), about 20 nautical miles (37 km) from the coast, at Bang Saphan, in the province of Prachuap Khiri Khan (south ).
Navy footage shows the ship, fully tilted to one side, half-engulfed in water.
Some 75 crew members were rescued by the two military helicopters, two frigates and the amphibious ship dispatched to the scene, according to a navy statement.
The rescue mission, which started at 7 a.m. (0000 GMT), is continuing.
About 11 people were hospitalized at Bang Saphan.