Kuala Lumpur, Aug 26 : The crew of a Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) ship was evacuated due to heavy flooding, following a collision with an underwater object off the coast of Johor state.

All the crew had been recovered safely while the partially submerged ship was being salvaged, the RMN said on Sunday in a statement.

"A leak was first detected at 12 p.m. ... It is believed to have been caused by the vessel colliding with an underwater object. It (the leak) was initially detected in the ship's engine room before spreading uncontrollably. The crew was safely recovered after efforts to control the situation and stabilise the vessel did not succeed," it added.

RMN said the ship partially sank in the incident, which occurred at noon two nautical miles southeast of Tanjung Penyusop while it was conducting an operation in the area, Xinhua news agency reported.

It said all 39 crew members were rescued after efforts to stem the leak and stabilise the ship failed.

The focus now is on conducting a salvage operation to save the ship.

RMN will establish a special investigative board immediately to determine the cause of the incident, it said.

The Navy said several parties responded to the incident, including the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, the police and the maritime community in the vicinity.

The public is advised not to speculate on the incident. Please refer to official RMN sources for the latest developments and accurate information, it added.

/IANS