New Delhi, June 9 (IANS) India on Tuesday said that there had been an exchange of communication between the Palau-flagged vessel MT Marivex and the US Navy before the fire incident that disabled the ship off the coast of Oman.

Addressing the weekly media briefing in New Delhi, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal confirmed that all 24 Indian crew members aboard the vessel had been rescued safely and expressed gratitude to the Omani government for its support in the rescue operation.

“The ship MT Marivex was disabled off the coast of Oman. We have learned that it is a Palau-flagged vessel. We also understand there was some exchange of communication between the ship and the US Navy before the incident. There were 24 crew members on board the ship, all of them being Indian nationals. All 24 have been rescued, and they are safe. Our Embassy for this purpose, for the evacuation and rescue purpose, contacted the Omani authorities who swung into action,” Jaiswal stated.

“We were in touch with several other stakeholders, including the Ministry of Shipping here and MRCC and other stakeholders. We thank and are grateful to the Omani government for their excellent support in rescuing the crew and ensuring safety. Our mission continues to be in touch with the seafarers,” he added.

The Embassy of India in Muscat on Monday stated that the 24 Indian seafarers aboard MT Marivex had been rescued following a fire incident south of the Strait of Hormuz and thanked the Omani authorities for their swift action.

“We are thankful to the Omani authorities for their swift response and rescue of all the 24 crew members of Indian nationality onboard MT Marivex, and for ensuring their safety,” the Embassy wrote on X.

During an inter-ministerial briefing, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) said a fire was reported at around 1:30 pm on Monday.

“This is the preliminary information that we have received. Based on this, as per available information, all Indian seafarers are presently safe,” a ministry spokesperson said.

Opesh Kumar Sharma, Director of the Shipping Division, informed us that whether the ship was hit by a projectile is still being verified. “As you are aware, the fire incident was at 1:30 today,” he said.

He added, “We are in touch with the owners, and we are trying to ascertain the facts. We are also in touch with the Ministry of External Affairs and our mission in Oman.”

–IANS

scor/as