On February 18, the Pingtung-based tuna longliner Sheng Feng 128 ceased transmitting AIS and VMS at a position about 400 nm to the northwest of Palau’s Malakal Island. Taiwan called for assistance from nearby coastal states, as well as the U.S. Coast Guard, which deployed long-range search aircraft to assist. Five nearby Taiwanese fishing vessels joined in as well.
On February 23, the Kaohsiung-based fishing vessel Lien Sheng Fa lost contact in the Indian Ocean some 225 nm northeast of Rodrigues, an island at the eastern edge of Mauritius’ territory. The named storm Cyclone Freddy was passing through the same region at the time.
Taiwanese authorities contacted nearby fishing vessels to launch a search, and they asked for help from the Mauritius National Search and Rescue Center as well. The Mauritian coast guard vessel CGS Barracuda eventually found the upturned hull of the Lien Sheng Fa, and the crew sent down a dive team to inspect the wreck on Sunday. The vessel’s identity was confirmed, but her Taiwanese captain and 15 Indonesian crewmembers remain missing.
Once on scene, National Coast Guard officers found the keel suspended out of the water as the vessel was overturned. Diving the vessel, NCG elements confirmed that it was the FV Sheng Fa link and found that the various compartments such as the doors and the hatch were open. However, the divers did not have access to the engine room which was flooded.
Even more dramatic was the fact that there was no sign of the 16 crew members in the area. In addition, there was no lifeboat on the trawler, except for a few torn life jackets. In the meantime, the Dornier aircraft made an initial for a flyover to look for debris or human presence on a lifeboat.
The FV Lien Sheng Fa is 25 meters long and five meters wide. It was last in Mauritius on September 8, 2022 for bunkering and food supply. The trawler left the port on October 6. Song local agent was Ocean Connect Marine Company Ltd.
