Nguyen Thanh Luyen, Ha Van Tan, Tran Theo, and Tran Thuan Thanh were brought ashore at 1 pm, July 21 by coast guards. They were among 15 crew members of a fishing boat that sank on July 10 off Binh Thuan. They were rescued on July 19 by another fishing boat while drifting on a small bamboo boat at around 1 pm on July 19. Three others on their boat died and eight remain missing.
After being found in very weak health, three of the four fishermen returned to their homes while Tran Thuan Thanh, 54, was sent to hospital for further treatment.
One of the rescued fishermen, Ha Van Tan, 50, recounted how their boat sank in strong winds and high waves while on the way back to Phan Thiet Port on July 10 when they were only some 155 kilometres from Phu Quy Island.
"After the boat sank, we separated into two groups of eight and seven and climbed onto two small bamboo boats that we brought with us," Tan recalled. "We belonged to the seven-member group and struggled against severe sun, strong winds and high waves while drifting at sea. We tried to survive by drinking rainwater but three members gradually died on July 14, 15, and 16 and we had no other choice but to leave their bodies at sea."
With eyes full of tears and tiredness, Tan said that they could only pray for luck during those days.
"We saw a foreign ship and called for help but they refused to take us on," he said. "They gave us some food and drinks and then left. And luckily a fishing boat owned by captain Le Thanh Toan saw and rescued us on July 19. Toan then informed the Phan Thiet Radio Station and the 3rd Regional Marine Police sent a coast guard ship to bring us home."
Phuong told local authorities that Toan called her on the morning of July 9 saying that they were returning to Phan Thiet Port on July 10. However, she could not contact him again on July 12 when the boat should have returned to port early that morning.
Data from 3rd Regional Marine Police showed that the boat lost signal at 5 am on July 10 some 84 nautical miles northwest of Phu Quy Island. At that time there were strong winds and high waves of between 2-4 metres.
Binh Thuan Provincial People's Committee sent a coast guard ship to the area to search for the fishing boat. They also called for joint efforts from relevant agencies and other fishing boats operating in the area to look for the missing boat.
The Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Response and Search and Rescue on July 20 sent a helicopter to assist in the search for the missing fishermen at the request of Binh Thuan authorities.