Authorities in the Mangystau Region have updated information on servicemen killed, injured, and missing during exercises in the Caspian Sea. According to the latest data, 17 people were swept into the open sea during bad weather. Twelve of them died, three were rescued, and the whereabouts of two others remain unknown, infohub.kz reports.
A government commission led by Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbayev has begun working at the site of the emergency. It is currently coordinating the search for the missing.
"Kanat Bozumbayev has ordered continuous round-the-clock search for the missing servicemen, involving all necessary forces and resources. He also instructed that the families of the deceased servicemen be provided with necessary material and other assistance," the Mangystau Region akimat said.
The chronology of the tragedy is as follows: on September 24, servicemen were carrying out a training and combat mission on the coast of the Caspian Sea. According to the Ministry of Defense, the weather sharply deteriorated and the wind intensified. The servicemen were swept into the open sea.
One of the three rescued servicemen was taken to the Mangystau Regional Multidisciplinary Hospital. Doctors assess his condition as stably serious.
A criminal case has been opened into the deaths of the servicemen. President Qasym-Jomart Toqaev expressed condolences to their families and declared September 25 a day of national mourning.