31 THAI SAILORS ARE STILL MISSING AFTER SHIP SANK

Navy commander says there weren’t enough life jackets

Thai navy ships and helicopters searched Monday for more than 30 sailors still missing 24 hours after their warship sank in rough seas in the Gulf of Thailand. Survivors described chaotic scenes as they struggled to survive while the ship went down, and the navy commander confirmed there were not enough life jackets for everyone on board.

As of Monday night, 75 sailors from the Sukhothai warship had been rescued and 31 were still missing, the navy said.

The high waves that caused the accident had lessened since Sunday night’s sinking, but were still high enough to endanger small boats, the navy said.

Details about the sinking and the initial rescue effort were still unclear. One sailor told Thai Rath television that there were not enough life jackets because more people than usual were aboard the ship.

In comments broadcast by another station, PPTV, Navy Commander Adm. Choengchai Chomchoengpaet

confirmed that was true.

“This operation, they added staff from the Marine Corps and Air and Coastal Defense Command, about 30 people. This is why I think there were not enough life jackets,” he said.

The ship normally carried a total of 87 crew and officers, according to the navy’s website.

Another survivor interviewed by Thai Rath said waves swept people away as the boat was listing.

He said a big wave “took me, threw me under the ship. The ship went vertical and pulled me down. I struggled to get up and held on to someone who had a life jacket.”

The sailors interviewed by Thai TV stations were not identified by name but spoke at a makeshift rescue center on shore.

A rescued crew member interviewed by Thai PBS television said he had to float in the sea for three hours before he was rescued.

He said the ship was buffeted by waves 10 feet high as it was sinking Sunday night, complicating rescue efforts.

Eleven of the rescued sailors were being treated in a hospital.

The navy denied a local media report that one death had been confirmed, saying the fatality was from an accident involving another boat.

ROYAL THAI NAVY VIA AP The Sukhothai warship lists in the Gulf of Thailand after sinking in rough seas off the coast of Prachuap Khiri Khan province, Thailand, on Sunday.