Four days after the Panama‑flagged cargo vessel MV Ocean Winner sank in the Bay of Bengal, search teams have located a lifeboat bearing the ship’s name, but there is still no trace of the vessel or its 22 missing crew members.
The lifeboat was found during a joint operation by the Indian Coast Guard’s Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) and the MRCC of China. No crew was inside. Coast Guard ship ICGS Varad also recovered an emergency beacon linked to the missing vessel.
The ship had departed Paradip Port on August 20 carrying 1,700 tonnes of iron ore bound for Singapore. Contact was lost on August 22, about 240 nautical miles off the Odisha coast.
Of the 24 crew members — 20 Chinese, three from Myanmar, and one Bangladeshi — only two Chinese sailors were rescued earlier by merchant vessel MT AISOPOS. The remaining 22 are still unaccounted for.
The Indian Navy has deployed a P‑8I maritime surveillance aircraft, while Coast Guard vessels ICGS Varad, ICGS Anmol, and ICGS Vijit continue the search. Merchant ships in the area have also been alerted to assist.
Authorities said operations will continue until survivors or wreckage are located.
