24 Indian crew rescued after tanker fire off Oman coast

A Palau-flagged tanker carrying 24 Indian crew members was pulled to safety off Oman after the ship’s crew sent distress messages saying it was on fire and sinking. The rescue unfolded against the backdrop of a U.S. strike on the same vessel in the Gulf of Oman, turning a maritime emergency into a stark reminder of how fast regional conflict can endanger civilian seafarers and the energy lanes they keep open.

The tanker, MT Marivex, was anchored off Masirah, about 15 nautical miles from the coast, when the Indian Coast Guard said its Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre in Mumbai received the alert at about 2:20 p.m. IST on June 8, 2026. Distress audio reported from the vessel said: “Fire on board. Vessel is sinking. U.S. Navy attacked with missile our engine room.” Omani authorities responded quickly, diverting a nearby vessel and deploying two rescue helicopters.

By about 5 p.m. the same day, all 24 Indian crew members had been safely evacuated. The Indian Embassy in Muscat thanked Omani authorities for their swift response, while India’s shipping ministry said all the seafarers were safe and that it was coordinating with the Ministry of External Affairs, Indian missions abroad, the Indian Navy and the Ministry of Defence.

U.S. Central Command said on June 8 that U.S. forces disabled the unladen tanker in the Gulf of Oman after it allegedly attempted to sail to an Iranian port in violation of an ongoing blockade against Iran. CENTCOM said an F/A-18 Super Hornet from USS Abraham Lincoln fired a precision munition into the ship’s engineering and steering spaces after the crew did not comply with directions from U.S. forces. The strike added another layer of danger near the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important energy corridors.

The Marivex case also underscored the legal and commercial tangle around vessels linked to Iran. The ship was sanctioned by the U.S. in December 2025 for Iran links, and it had earlier carried Iranian oil to India. For shipping authorities, the incident landed in a crisis already stretching response systems: India’s Directorate General of Shipping said it had handled more than 12,000 calls and nearly 27,000 emails since the regional crisis began, and had facilitated the repatriation of more than 3,500 Indian seafarers.