A survey ship of Belgium-based company Jan De Nul working in the Rabnabad channel drowned near Payra port in Patuakhali on Monday.
However, 10 Indonesian and two Bangladeshi crew members onboard the ship named Express-54 were immediately rescued by a fishing boat and later they reached the port by a tugboat of the company.
The ship drowned seven nautical miles off the fare buoy of the port on Monday morning.
Also read: Trawler sinks in Bay: 13 Bhola fishermen go missing
Captain ASM Sharifur Rahman, harbor master of the port, said water started gushing through a hole beside the ship's machine room when it was out for survey work for dredging.
The crews immediately sought help from a nearby fishing boat and had been safely rescued, he said.
He said the process is on to pull out the drowned ship from the water.
Also read: 13 stranded fishermen rescued from Bay
The rescued are- master Arham Abdul Rahim, chief officer Mochamad Rizal, second officer Darmawan, chief engineer Muhammad Nur, second engineer Trai Yanto, oiler Rahmat Fadilla, AB Audi Cristian, AB Rudi Rahman, oiler Muhammad Agam Fayez Julfa, cook Jujua Anglebert, surveyor Saiduzzaman Imon, and MD Sohanuzzaman Sumon.