The vessel Bawaqa, which is owned by the Ba Holdings Limited, is sinking slowly in the open seas where it struck the reef off Viwa Island.

An eyewitness Kelemedi Vecenayawa said the change in wind direction and rough seas has resulted in the ship slowly sinking.

Vecenayawa added that the captain and crew have now abandoned the ship when it started sinking.

Last Friday Ba Holdings Limited sent a team to assess the situation and mount a salvage operation.

About 26 passengers had to be rescued by villagers of Nabalebale and staff from Viwa Island resort when the Bawaqa started taking in water and hit a reef off the coast of Viwa.