Sailors battling to stop Royal Navy warship sinking after another reversed into it

SAILORS are fighting to stop one Navy minehunter from sinking after another reversed into it.

A mechanical fault was blamed for HMS Chiddingfold lurching backwards, leaving HMS Bangor with a gaping hole in its side.

The Sun was told the impact off Bahrain nearly destroyed the galley and bedrooms, but none of the 39 crew on board was reported hurt.

HMS Bangor, a Sandown-class minehunter, was left trying to limp back to port.

It is made from fibreglass instead of steel to counteract the threat from magnetic mines.

It was with HMS Chiddingold, a Hunt-class minehunter, as part of Operation Kipion — aiming to safeguard oil and trade routes.

More than 160 large merchant ships each day pass through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and the nearby Strait of Hormuz.

Houthi terrorists in Yemen have been targeting shipping.