Five fishermen in Khanh Hoa Province were rescued on March 15 after being attacked near the Paracel Islands and drifting at sea for nearly two days.
Five fishermen arrived at Hong Ro Port
The fishing boat captained by Nguyen Van Tam was working at night on March 7 when they heard a loud bang on the side before realising that they had been hit by another ship. Fisherman Le Ngoc Vinh said, "The boat suddenly titled, water started pouring in and we were sinking."
Captain Nguyen Van Tam
The boat disappeared under water after 15 minutes as the five fishermen quickly jumped onto a round boat with some food and water. "Thankfully we had a flashlight so staying at night in the middle of the sea was less scary. It was cold but we couldn't do anything but munch on instant noodles," fisherman Do Huu Thanh said.
Nguyen Teo, captain of another fishing boat, said he was given notice about a boat in distress at 4am. Half a day passed before he found traces of the sunken boat but there was no sign of the crew. When Teo tried to go near an island to find the missing fishermen, he couldn't make contact via the radio with the mainland.
At 10pm on March 9, Teo found the round woven boat with the fishermen floating on the sea. "They were all exhausted, tired and scared so we gave them blankets and food," Teo said.
Do Huu Thanh said when they saw Teo's boat, some people cried, unable to believe that they escaped death at sea. They arrived at Hon Ro Port, Nha Trang City on March 15.
Thanh presumed the grey 50-metre long vessel could have been Chinese.
Khanh Hoa Province Fisheries Association said they would ask the Vietnam Fisheries Association and government agencies to investigate the report.
