Early this morning, a cargo ship carrying steel sank in the Sea of Marmara following a collision with an oil tanker, leaving 10 crew members missing. This incident occurred approximately 33 km off Istanbul province's western edge.

The collision involved the cargo ship Tugberk Imamoglu, which was transporting 4,200 tons of coiled and bar steel, and the oil tanker ALSU. The Maritime Authority, part of Turkey's Ministry of Transport, confirmed the Tugberk Imamoglu and its crew lost contact and were subsequently determined to have sunk.

The Tugberk Imamoglu before the incident. *Photo: Maritime Optima*

Abdulkadir Uraloglu, Turkey's Transport Minister, stated the vessel "sank very quickly." He detailed the timeline: "We received an emergency call at 3:26 h. Considering the captain's initial report at 3:15 h, the vessel sank within approximately 11 minutes. We located buoys and one empty lifeboat. Regrettably, no survivors have been found so far. Search and rescue operations are continuing."

All 10 individuals aboard the Tugberk Imamoglu, including the captain and 9 crew members, are Turkish nationals. The Turkish maritime agency reported that the ALSU sustained no significant damage and remained on site to aid in rescue efforts.

VesselFinder, a ship tracking website, identifies the Tugberk Imamoglu as a 90 m long cargo ship built in 1990.

The Turkish Maritime Authority initially reported the ALSU carried 3,000 tons of engine oil. However, they later corrected this, confirming the vessel was completely empty during its collision with the Tugberk Imamoglu.

This incident follows a tragic ferry accident off Cyprus three days prior, which resulted in the deaths of 8 Turkish citizens. Rescue teams continue to search for 20 missing individuals from that earlier event.

Vu Hoang (According to AFP, Reuters, AP)