News Story: Typhoon Blows Ferry into Two Taiwanese Frigates

Former USS Joseph Hewes, now Taiwanese frigate
Lan-Yang (Image: Wiki Commons)

On Saturday, as Typhoon Nesat swept through Taiwan, the high-speed ferry Natchan Rera was torn from her moorings by high winds and pushed into the Taiwanese Navy frigates Lan-Yang and Huai-Yang. Navy officials said that the impact put a three-foot crack in the hull of the Lan-yang on the port quarter and dented the stern of the Huai-Yang. 

The aluminum-hulled Natchan Rera suffered greater damage, and was reportedly holed above the waterline. The Taiwanese Navy has launched an investigation into the circumstances of the accident. 

The Incat-designed Natchan Rera has a sea speed of 40 knots fully loaded, with accommodations for up to 800 people, 24 buses and 300 cars. She ordinarily operates a coastwise route in eastern Taiwan, as well as a route between Taipei and Pingtan, Fujian Province. As of Monday afternoon, she was moored at Keelung City, Taiwan. 

Read the full story at MarEx