19 sailors still missing from sunken corvette as search continues in Gulf
Three more bodies were found floating in the sea on Saturday morning, bringing the unofficial death toll from the sunken HTMS Sukhothai to 10, as the search for the 19 remaining missing sailors entered its sixth day.
A navy source said HTMS Taksin found the first body at 11.37am and HTMS Kraburi recovered it from the sea. At 12.10pm, patrol ship 113 found a body and HTMS Kraburi recovered it. An aircraft detected another body at 12.15pm and HTMS Taksin recovered it from the sea.
On Friday, another body was found near the spot where HTMS Sukhothai sank in the Gulf of Thailand. Pending confirmation of identities, this would bring the known death toll to 10.
However, the official figure of dead crewmen and the number still missing has yet to be released by the navy.
Royal Thai Navy spokesman Adm Pokkrong Monthatpalin said earlier on Saturday that an air and sea search by the navy and other agencies was continuing. Diving teams were also active at the spot where HTMS Sukhothai sank
On Saturday morning, an aircraft detected another body in the sea in the fourth zone of the search area, said Adm Pokkrong.
HTMS Kraburi recovered the body from the sea and sent it to HTMS Taksin, which took the body to shore for identity verification, said the navy spokesman.
On Friday, another body was found floating near the spot where HTMS Sukhothai sank off Bang Saphan district in Prachuap Khiri Khan province.
HTMS Sukhothai, with 105 people on board, capsized on Sunday night as it was patrolling in rough seas. Seventy-six sailors were rescued alive. Officially, eight have been found dead and 21 are still missing, said the spokesman.