JAKARTA — Indonesian rescuers searching for a
submarine that went missing with 53 people on board found an oil spill on Wednesday near where the vessel dived, authorities said.
اضافة اعلان
The 44-year-old submarine, KRI Nanggala-402, was conducting a
torpedo drill in waters north of the island of Bali but failed to relay the results as expected, a navy spokesman said.
An aerial search found an oil spill near the submarine's dive location and two navy vessels with sonar capability have been deployed to assist in the search, the Defense Ministry said.
A ministry statement said requests for assistance had been sent and Australia, Singapore, and India had responded.
"We are still searching in the waters of Bali, 96km from Bali, (for) 53 people," military chief Hadi Tjahjanto told Reuters in a text message. He said contact with the vessel was lost at 4:30am on Wednesday.
"It is possible that during static diving, a blackout occurred so control was lost and emergency procedures cannot be carried out and the ship falls to a depth of 600-700 meters," the
Indonesian Navy said in a statement.
The submarine was built to sustain pressure at a maximum depth of around 250 meters, an official said.
The oil spill found on the surface could also mean there was damage to its fuel tank or could also be a signal from the crew, the navy said.
The military chief will hold a media briefing to share further information about the search on Thursday from Bali, a spokesman said.
Military analyst Soleman Ponto said it was too early to determine the fate of the submarine.
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