According to the Thai navy, a total of 31 sailors remain missing after a warship with over 100 crew onboard it, overturned and went down the waters during a storm in the Gulf of Thailand.
The HTMS Sukhothai sank after water went inside its power controls on Sunday night.
On Monday, authorities informed of rescuing 75 crew, but 31 still remain missing in stormy seas.
“It’s been more than 12 hours, but we will keep looking,” a navy spokesman told the BBC.
Search teams looked throughout Sunday night to find survivors and kept the operation going on Monday with air force assistance.
The navy also announced an investigation into the cause of the disaster.
“This has almost never happened in our force’s history, especially to a ship that is still in active use,” spokesman Admiral Pogkrong Monthardpalin told the BBC.
While explaining the situation, officials said the ship sank after the water reached inside, which was filled in its hull and short-circuited its power room.
As the power went off, the crew struggled to take control of the ship that tipped over before sinking on Sunday night at 23:30 local time (20:30 MUT).
The ship had been on a surveillance 32km (20 miles) east of Bang Saphan, in the Prachuap Khiri Khan province, when the stormed closed in on it on Sunday.
Thai Navy posted significant pictures in its Twitter account that show the ship tipping on its starboard side, and rescue ships looking out for survivors in dangerous waters.
Three naval ships and helicopters came in for assistance, however, the HTMS Kraburi could make it to the vessel before it went down.
According to the navy, the frigate took up the majority of the Sukhothai’s crew. There were sailors in life rafts and the sea wearing life jackets. On their condition, the navy has provided very little information. Pictures of medical professionals at the dock escorting crew members off in stretchers were released in the local media.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-Cha issued a statement on Monday assuring officials were continuing their enquiry about the disaster.
“I am following the news closely – about five people are seriously injured,” he said.
The HTMS Sukhothai was built for the Thai navy in the US in the mid-1980s.
