Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

World

Eight missing as ship sinks off Scotland

-

An overturned cargo ship sank Sunday off the coast of Scotland as the search continued for the missing eight-member crew.

Seven Poles and one Filipino were on board the Cypriot-registered Cemfjord, a cargo ship carrying cement, which capsized around 15 miles (24 kilometres) from Wick on the northeast tip of Scotland.

Two helicopters, four lifeboats and five coastguard rescue teams are involved in the search for survivors.

The prow of the Cemfjord had been sticking upright out of the water but the ship has now sunk completely.

"The vessel is no longer visible," said a spokeswoman for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

"The coastguard rescue teams are still searching and the helicopters are still up. So the search is still going on," but there had been no sign of the crew.

The ship's last-known position was at 1315 GMT on Friday. A passing ferry spotted the upturned hull at around 1430 GMT on Saturday.

"The captain gave an announcement to say they had contacted the coastguard, that we were actually the first to come across this, and they had asked us to start conducting a search for any debris or any lifeboats," passenger Caitlin Ditchfield told the BBC.

"Everyone was trying to help with the search, looking out the windows to see what they could see."

An overturned cargo ship sank Sunday off the coast of Scotland as the search continued for the missing eight-member crew.

Seven Poles and one Filipino were on board the Cypriot-registered Cemfjord, a cargo ship carrying cement, which capsized around 15 miles (24 kilometres) from Wick on the northeast tip of Scotland.

Two helicopters, four lifeboats and five coastguard rescue teams are involved in the search for survivors.

The prow of the Cemfjord had been sticking upright out of the water but the ship has now sunk completely.

“The vessel is no longer visible,” said a spokeswoman for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

“The coastguard rescue teams are still searching and the helicopters are still up. So the search is still going on,” but there had been no sign of the crew.

The ship’s last-known position was at 1315 GMT on Friday. A passing ferry spotted the upturned hull at around 1430 GMT on Saturday.

“The captain gave an announcement to say they had contacted the coastguard, that we were actually the first to come across this, and they had asked us to start conducting a search for any debris or any lifeboats,” passenger Caitlin Ditchfield told the BBC.

“Everyone was trying to help with the search, looking out the windows to see what they could see.”

AFP
Written By

With 2,400 staff representing 100 different nationalities, AFP covers the world as a leading global news agency. AFP provides fast, comprehensive and verified coverage of the issues affecting our daily lives.

You may also like:

World

A girl washes clothes by hand at a camp for displaced Palestinians erected in a school run by the United Nations Relief and Works...

World

Displaced Palestinian children chat with an Egyptian soldier through the fence separating Egypt and Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip - Copyright AFP MOHAMMED...

Business

Moody's maintained France's sovereign rating at "Aa2" with a stable outlook.

Sports

The head of the International Olympic Committee Thomas Bach has backed the World Anti-Doping Agency.