KOROR – A luxury tourist sailing vessel plying the waters of Palau has capsized in shallow waters near one of Palau’s best known dive sites.

Koror State Government’s chief administrative officer, Earnest Ongidobe, said the Palau Siren sprung a leak last Monday, then eventually capsized and sank in shallow waters of the Wonder Channel 12 hours later.

Wonder Channel leads up to Jellyfish Lake, one of the most popular tourist sites in Palau.

“There was a leak that eventually worsened and caused for the boat to sink,” he stated.

According to other sources, the boat was carrying 13 crew members and customers when it experienced trouble due to very strong waves and rough seas in the area.

The same sources said that half of the customers were reportedly diving at sea when the mishap occurred. The passengers and crew evacuated to a smaller boat and were rescued a few hours later.

There was no death or injury reported from the accident.

Ongidobel said people from the Koror State Government responded to the scene and made sure there was no oil leakage that could harm the environment nearby.

“Fortunately, no one got hurt and no oil spill was reported so far,” he stated.

Ongidobel said Koror State and the Environmental Quality Protection Board are monitoring the ship and the area where it went down to prevent or minimize any oil spill.

According to Ongidobel, the boat is currently stuck in the channel and that they are working to salvage the vessel when the weather clears.

“As of now, bad weather hampers any attempt to salvage the vessel,” he pointed out.

As part of the Siren fleet, the Palau Siren, launched in 2012, was built by a team of master yacht builders on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi.

She is a 40-metre long, traditional gaff rig Phinisi, handcrafted from ironwood and teak. The vessel is decorated internally with Palauan art.

The Palau Siren can accommodate up to 16 passengers, in eight air-conditioned cabins, with either twin or double beds. All cabins have their own personal audio-visual entertainment system, bathrooms with hot water through a central heating system.

It has an expansive lounge with cocktail bar, sofas, and 42 inch flatscreen entertainment system.

It is fully equipped with the latest scuba diving technology and equipment and provides a liveaboard diving the opportunity to explore Palau’s spectacular dive sites.

It is owned by Worldwide Dive and Sail which operates a range of diving, sailing and cruising yachts across Asia and the Pacific.