Tanker sinks in Malacca Strait

Tanker sinks in Malacca Strait

KUALA LUMPUR (AP): Marine police on Monday rescued 12 Indonesian crew members of a Panama-registered tanker when their vessel sank after colliding with another tanker in the narrow waters off Malaysia's west coast.

The crew of the Singapore Timur escaped with minor injuries in the incident, which occurred early Monday about seven miles (11.3 kilometers) southwest of Undan Island in the Malacca Strait between peninsular Malaysia and the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The ship was traveling from Singapore to Malaysia's Port Klang.

Captain Ahmad Osman of Malaysia's Maritime Rescue Coordination Center said officials were investigating the cause of the Singapore Timur's collision with the Bahama-registered M.T. Rowan tanker.

He said the M.T. Rowan, which had been heading from Singapore to Port Kassim in Pakistan, suffered a hole in its hull. The vessel was currently anchored off Malaysia's southern Malacca state while authorities determined if it was still seaworthy.