Six crew members are missing after a small Thai tanker sank in the Gulf of Thailand. The tanker Venus 14 carried fuel for fishing boats. The Royal Thai Navy got the report that it had sunk at 09:00 local time on Wednesday, 11 November 2026.
The ship went down about 27 nautical miles south-west of the channel entrance to Sattahip Naval Base, in Chon Buri province. The navy spokesman, Rear Admiral Chanin Sriyabhai, gave the details.
The search
The navy's First Naval Area Command sent the patrol boat HTMS Tor (T.113) and a Dornier 228 patrol aircraft. They are looking for the six crew and checking the exact position of the wreck.
A helicopter and the navy ship HTMS Panyi are on standby. HTMS Panyi can stop oil from spreading. The navy has also warned other ships in the area to take care.
The navy is working with the Marine Department in case fuel leaks from the wreck. It is not known how much fuel the tanker had on board. The Bangkok Post published photos that show the vessel drifting before it sank.
As of the afternoon of 11 November, the six crew had not been found. The navy has not said what caused the sinking. It has not given the names or nationalities of the crew. We will update this story when there is more news.
Safety lessons for crews on small tankers and fishing vessels
The cause of this sinking is not yet known. But many small ships sink fast, and the first minutes decide who survives. These general steps can save lives.
Call for help early. If water comes in or the ship starts to list, send a Mayday on VHF channel 16 or by DSC (digital selective calling). Do not wait until the last moment.
Give your position. Say the ship's name, position, number of people on board and the problem. Repeat it if there is no reply.
Know where the EPIRB is. An EPIRB (emergency position-indicating radio beacon) sends your position to rescuers by satellite. Check that it floats free and that its battery date is valid.
Wear a lifejacket on deck, and keep one at your bunk. Many people go into the water from bed or from the deck with no time to find one.
Practise abandon-ship drills. Every crew member should know how to launch the liferaft and where to meet.
Leave your route with someone ashore. Tell family or the company where you are going and when you will return. Then a missing ship is noticed sooner.
On the longliner Argos Georgia, the crew sent no formal distress alert for almost two hours, and 13 of 27 people died. Read the lessons from the Argos Georgia report. For emergency numbers and helplines, see our useful links for seafarers. If you are looking for a safer next contract, browse external vacancies on Crewboard.
Cover photo: the Royal Thai Navy patrol boat HTMS Tor (T.113) near Phuket, May 2017. This is the patrol boat sent to search for the crew, photographed years earlier. Photo: Byron C. Linder/U.S. Navy via Wikimedia Commons, public domain.
Sources: Bangkok Post: 6 crew missing after oil tanker sinks off Chon Buri (11 Nov 2026), The Nation Thailand: Thai navy searches for six crew members after tanker sinks off Chonburi (11 Nov 2026), Thai PBS World: Search underway off Sattahip for six missing crew from sunken oil tanker (11 Nov 2026), Matichon: Navy sends T.113 and patrol aircraft to search for six Venus 14 crew (in Thai, 11 Nov 2026).
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