On Friday night, a small container ship, the Golden Star 1, sank in the Strait of Singapore shortly after departing from the pier. At approximately 10 PM local time on June 5, the vessel, which was engaged in coastal trading, began taking on water and quickly submerged about three nautical miles north of Batam. The ship was carrying nine crew members and around 100 containers.
The Golden Star 1 left PSA Tanjong Pagar Terminal around 8 PM, heading southeast towards designated traffic lanes. By 10:30 PM, its course became erratic, drifting westward before disappearing from the AIS at approximately 10:45 PM, according to data from Pole Star Global. Fortunately, the Indonesian Coast Guard was able to rescue all crew members from the water near Batam, and no injuries were reported.
Efforts to respond to the sinking are ongoing, focusing on monitoring and managing the potential hazards posed by floating containers from the ship’s cargo. The Indonesian Coast Guard is leading these operations with multiple vessels deployed to the scene. The Golden Star 1, built in 1995 and flagged in Tanzania, had previously been noted for corrosion issues during its last port state control inspection in 2022.
