An Indian crew member who fell overboard from a cargo vessel near the Maldives has been found dead, the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) confirmed on Friday.

The MNDF said the body was recovered in the southern waters of K. Feydhoofinolhu by the Coast Guard’s Second Squadron under the Male’ Area Command. The body was handed over to the Maldives Police Service for further investigation, according to local media reports.

The incident happened late on September 22 aboard the Indian-flagged vessel MSV Daulah, which was anchored about one kilometre north of Vilimale, near the Maldives capital, Male’. At around 11:35 pm, the ship reported that one of its crew members was missing and believed to have fallen overboard.

Following the report, the MNDF Coast Guard’s Second Squadron began a search operation immediately. The search involved both sea and air units and continued intensively for hours.

As of 7:22 am on September 23, around eight hours after the crew member went missing, the search had not located the individual, according to MNDF statements cited by local news outlet sun.mv.

The search efforts continued until Friday, when the crew member’s body was recovered. The MNDF confirmed the recovery and said the case is now under further investigation by the Maldives Police Service.

Reference: PTI News

Source: www.marineinsight.com