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Survivor recounts chaos after missile hits oil tanker near Strait of Hormuz
Updated 24 May 2026 - Sunil Puniya, a 26-year-old Indian seafarer, described the moment a missile struck the oil tanker Skylight in the early hours of 1 March, marking the first commercial vessel attack since the US-Israel conflict with Iran escalated in the region.
Sunil was asleep in his cabin when the explosion tore through the engine room, plunging the ship into darkness and filling the corridors with smoke. "I felt the whole ship shake," he said. "I thought there'd been some fault with the engine. But as soon as I stepped outside, there was another explosion."
The vessel, which had departed from Dubai and was approaching the Strait of Hormuz-a critical chokepoint for global oil shipments-was engulfed in flames within minutes. Sunil helped panicked crew members, including sailors from South India, reach the deck before jumping into the sea as the fire spread.
The Oman Navy rescued survivors within an hour, but two crew members-25-year-old Dalip Rathore, a close friend of Sunil, and the ship's captain, Ashish Kumar-were killed. While partial remains of the captain were recovered, Dalip's body was never found.
Friendship forged at sea ends in tragedy
Sunil and Dalip, both from neighboring villages in Rajasthan, had bonded quickly after meeting aboard the Skylight. "There were network issues on the ship, so we couldn't call home very often," Sunil recalled. "In those moments, Dalip was there for me. He became like a brother."
Hours before the attack, Dalip had taken over Sunil's shift in the engine room-the exact area where the missile struck. "As soon as I realized Dalip wasn't there, that's when it hit me," Sunil said. "I started panicking. I kept thinking: how will I answer to his family?"
Strait of Hormuz becomes flashpoint for maritime attacks
The Skylight incident is part of a broader crisis in the region. Since the conflict began, Iran has blocked the Strait of Hormuz, disrupting a route that carries 20% of the world's oil and liquified natural gas. Maritime intelligence firm Kpler reported 38 commercial vessels have been struck in and around the strait, with 24 attacks attributed to Iran and four to the US. The remainder remain unconfirmed.
The blockade has left over 20,000 seafarers stranded in the Gulf, according to the International Maritime Organization. Many ships remain anchored indefinitely, with crews facing dire conditions.
Seafarers abandoned as shipowners evade responsibility
The International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) has received over 2,000 distress calls from trapped seafarers since the conflict escalated. Complaints include unpaid wages, expired contracts, and shortages of food and water. Mohamed Arrachedi, the ITF's coordinator for the Arab world, described crews as "effectively stranded at sea," sharing voice notes from seafarers pleading for help off Oman's coast.
"Unfortunately, the industry has not succeeded in eradicating this cancer that is the abandonment of seafarers," Arrachedi said. Last year, 6,223 seafarers were abandoned across 409 ships, though this represents a small fraction of the global merchant fleet.
David Loosley of Bimco, a major shipping association, acknowledged that while international regulations exist, "isolated instances" of non-compliance have severe consequences. "Geopolitical conflicts significantly heighten the risks faced by those at sea," he added.
Sanctions and opaque ownership leave crews vulnerable
The Skylight was sanctioned by the US in December 2025 for transporting Iranian oil, leading to the loss of its insurance and flag state registration. By the time of the attack, it was uninsured and stateless-a status that leaves crews without legal recourse for compensation.
Maritime tracking platform MarineTraffic lists the shipowner as Red Sea Ship Management, a Dubai-based firm. However, the BBC's attempts to contact the company were unsuccessful, and no operational website exists. Analysts note that sanctions have driven some vessels to adopt complex ownership structures, making accountability nearly impossible to enforce.
"Because there's no insurance, there would be no compensation. You're left to the shipowner's conscience," said Michelle Bockmann, a maritime analyst at Windward. "Can you find the shipowner? Usually, they're nowhere to be seen."
Families left without answers or compensation
Under maritime law, commercial vessels must carry insurance to cover crew deaths and injuries. Without it, families like Dalip's face significant hurdles in securing compensation. Sunil said he was assured by a recruiting agent that the Skylight was insured-a claim the agent denied when contacted by the BBC, shifting blame to another agent in Dubai who did not respond.
Placing seafarers on uninsured ships violates maritime law. Yet, Rex Pereira, a 28-year-old seafarer from Mumbai who worked with the same agents as Sunil, described appalling conditions aboard his vessel, including diesel-contaminated drinking water and expired food. He witnessed missile strikes near his ship but was unable to identify the vessel's owner, eventually returning to India with the help of a union and the Indian embassy-after his family paid thousands in travel costs.
Sunil, who has not returned to sea since the attack, struggles with guilt over Dalip's death. "I haven't been able to gather the courage to go and see Dalip's family," he said. "If I see his home... I'll feel his presence and will be able to imagine him there. I miss him a lot."
