Search for Turkish freighter suspended due to poor weather

ANKARA - Anadolu Agency

DHA Photo

Rescue efforts to aid a freighter which sank after colliding with another merchant ship in a snowstorm off the Adriatic port of Ravenna on Dec. 28 have been suspended due to bad weather conditions, officials have said.

According to diplomatic sources, a search and rescue operation was carried out within a 30 mile radius of the collision with the aid of five ships and helicopters, but was suspended due to bad weather conditions.

The Turkish consul general in Milan, Aylin Sekizkök, visited the five rescued Turkish citizens at the Santa Maria delle Croci Hospital in Ravenna.

“They are all in good condition. Five of our sailors are hospitalized; two of them will be discharged tomorrow and one is in critical condition. Unfortunately, two of our sailors have been found dead and four others are missing,” she said.

The 2,000-ton Gökbel was on its way from Ravenna to another Italian port, Brindisi. It was built in 2008 and measured 87 by 13 meters; its home port was Istanbul.

The other vessel involved in the incident was the 3,828-ton Belize-flagged Lady Aziza, which was built in 1991 and last stopped at the Libyan port of Tripoli. It measured 97 by 16 meters.