The Sanchi Tanker Sank; A Day of National Mourning Declared in Iran

After it was officially announced that all crew members of the Sanchi oil tanker had lost their lives and that the tanker had completely sunk, the Iranian Cabinet declared Monday, January 15, as a day of national mourning across the country. In the statement released by the Cabinet, the crew members of the Sanchi tanker were referred to as "martyrs of service." Previously, Mohammad Rastad, the head of the Ports and Maritime Organization, stated that "nothing remains of the Sanchi tanker on the water" and said, "The ship has completely sunk, and it seems unlikely that we will have access to the other missing bodies." So far, the bodies of three crew members have been found, but their identities have not yet been confirmed. According to ILNA news agency, Mr. Rastad mentioned on Sunday, January 14, regarding the timeline for the delivery of the bodies of these three individuals that "after completing legal procedures, they will be handed over in China to representatives of the tanker and then delivered to Iran." The spokesperson for the committee investigating the Sanchi tanker incident had previously told ILNA, "Usually, in the event of a ship sinking, access to the crew and search operations becomes very difficult." ISNA news agency also reported the "bitter end of the Sanchi tragedy," stating that "the Iranian tanker has sunk." Just hours earlier, the head of the Ports and Maritime Organization had informed the state news agency IRNA that all crew members of the Iranian ship had died in the early hours of the incident, attributing the cause to "the release of toxic gases and the intensity of the explosion." He, who was in Shanghai, China, stated that "efforts to extinguish the fire and board the ship to rescue the bodies of the crew, despite all efforts, were not possible due to repeated explosions." Meanwhile, according to ILNA, Ali Rabiei, the Minister of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare, said, "The Chinese said from the very first day that all the crew of the Sanchi had died." He did not explain why this information had not been announced until now. This was in a situation where Iranian officials had repeatedly mentioned the possibility of the crew and passengers being trapped in the engine room and added that to save their lives, they needed to board the ship as soon as possible. However, IRNA reported that due to the intensity of the fire on the Sanchi tanker near the coast of China, it is impossible for rescue teams to board the vessel. According to this report, the temperature of the Sanchi tanker had reached 350 degrees, and "conditions for entering it are absolutely not available." It has been reported that the height of the fire now exceeds 100 meters. A Chinese rescue team, on Saturday, January 13, after the accident and fire on the Iranian oil tanker, retrieved the bodies of two of the deceased and the black box from the vessel. Previously, the body of one of the victims had also been found. Following the collision of the Sanchi with a Chinese bulk carrier in the East China Sea on January 6, 32 crew members of the tanker went missing, including 30 Iranians and two others from Bangladesh. The Sanchi tanker, flying the flag of Panama, was carrying 136,000 tons of gas condensate exported from Iran to South Korea. In this incident, the Chinese cargo ship sustained minor damage, and all 21 of its crew members, who are all Chinese nationals, were rescued.