International Maritime Organisation's Secretary-General Kitack Lim gives the Award for Exceptional Bravery at Sea to a representative of Tran Van Khoi (Photo: VNA)

An award ceremony was held at the IMO headquarters in London on Monday. Khoi is the first Vietnamese to be honoured with the award.

As he could not come to the ceremony due to COVID-19, a short video showing he and his colleagues braved extreme weather and heavy seas to rescue four sailors in the sunken cargo vessel Vietship 01, was screened at the event.

IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim spoke highly of Khoi’s acts which helped save many lives during the incident off Quang Tri waters in October.

This annual award is to provide international recognition for those who, at the risk of losing their own life, perform acts of exceptional bravery, displaying outstanding courage in attempting to save life at sea or in attempting to prevent or mitigate damage to the marine environment.