Navy Logistics Ship Rescues 10 Iraqis

Military Sealift Command dry cargo/ammunition ship USNS Sacagawea Boatswain's Mate Clarence Johnson (far left) and Medical Services Officer Paul Manning (third from right) helped rescue 10 Iraqi mariners (pictured) from the sinking coastal tanker MV Nadi February 22 in the Central Arabian Gulf.

Military Sealift Command dry cargo/ammunition ship USNS Sacagawea rescued 10 Iraqi citizens from a sinking 250-ft. coastal tanker in the Central Arabian Gulf Friday, February 22. The Bahrain-based Maritime Liaison Office issued an alert that the North Korean-flagged vessel MV Nadi was sinking and that her crew needed assistance. Nadi, which was actively flooding, had been operating without power for a week and its crew members were suffering from dehydration and exhaustion.

Sacagawea, which was conducting logistics operations in the area, arrived on-scene to help shortly after the distress call was issued. Aircraft from USS Truman’s Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron HS 7 picked up the seamen and delivered them to Sacagawea where they were examined by medical officers.

On February 23 HS 7 transferred the Iraqi mariners to the UK’s Royal Fleet Auxiliary landing dock ship Cardigan Bay. On February 24 the mariners were transferred to the Iraqi Navy for further transport to their country of origin. USNS Sacagawea is a U.S. government-owned ship crewed by 124 U.S. civil service mariners. MSC operates more than 110 noncombatant, civilian-crewed ships that deliver combat equipment to troops, strategically preposition combat cargo at sea around the world, re-supply Navy ships at sea, and perform a variety of other missions for the Department of Defense.