10 crew members missing after 2 commercial ships collide off Istanbul’s Silivri coast
One vessel is feared sunk and 10 crew members are missing after two Turkish-flagged commercial ships collided in the Sea of Marmara early Wednesday morning, Qazinform News Agency reports, citing Anadolu.
The collision occurred at approximately 3:00 a.m. local time (0000 GMT), 18 nautical miles south of Istanbul's Silivri district, according to a statement from the Istanbul Governor's Office.
The incident
The two vessels involved in the crash have been identified as:
The Alsu - a Turkish-flagged commercial vessel en route from Kocaeli to Aliaga. Initial assessments by emergency teams indicate the Alsu suffered no visible damage.
The Tugberk Imamoglu – a Turkish-flagged commercial vessel traveling from Iskenderun Port to Karadeniz Eregli.
Silivri açıklarında çarpışan iki ticari geminin rotası, kazanın meydana geldiği nokta ve detaylar ⤵️ https://t.co/FHHqWGpH7j https://t.co/HFz0vqfRg0 pic.twitter.com/FVP5sPt5iq
— Anadolu Ajansı (@anadoluajansi) September 2, 2026
Search and rescue operations
The Directorate General of Maritime Affairs fears the Tugberk Imamoglu has sunk. Contact with the vessel was completely lost following the impact; the ship has failed to respond to radio calls, and none of the 10 crew members have answered their phones.
Emergency response teams have located floating debris, but no survivors. Life-saving equipment belonging to the Tugberk Imamoglu, including its free-fall lifeboat, was found drifting on the sea surface. Authorities confirmed that none of the 10 assigned crew members were inside or near the recovered equipment.
A large-scale search and rescue operation is currently underway. Rescue vessels from the General Directorate of Coastal Safety and the Coast Guard Marmara and Straits Command, alongside a Coast Guard helicopter, have been deployed to the area.
Maritime authorities continue to monitor the developments and state that the public will be updated as the investigation and search efforts progress.
Earlier, it was reported that a tragic accident in Egypt’s South Sinai had left 16 people dead and 28 injured after a passenger bus overturned on the Dahab–Nuweiba road.
