On 29 Feb 2004, at about 0900hrs, a Singapore-registered chemical tanker Bow Mariner (22,587 Gross Tons) exploded and sank some 50 nautical miles (90 km) off the coast of Norfolk, Virginia, USA. Odfjell Asia II Pte Ltd, which is part of the Odfjell Group, owns the vessel.

According to its ship manager, Ceres Shipping (S) Pte Ltd, Bow Mariner was carrying ethanol and was en route to Houston for cargo operations when the vessel exploded and subsequently sank off the coast of Norfolk. A total of 27 crew members were onboard the vessel at the time of the incident. They comprise three Greeks (including the shipmaster) and 24 Filipinos. Ceres Shipping said that nine crew members were reported to have been recovered and sent to the hospital, while the remaining 18 are missing. The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) has contacted the Rescue Coordination Centre (RCC) in Norfolk and the RCC confirmed that out of the nine recovered, three are dead and the remaining six are alive. The search and rescue (SAR) operations by the US authorities are ongoing. They have deployed three planes and three craft to assist in the SAR operations.

An MPA officer will be leaving shortly for the United States to assist the US authorities in the investigation of the incident.

The MPA is in contact with the ship manager and the US Coast Guard, and monitoring the situation.

End of Release.