EU border agency helping search for missing crew after cargo ship sinks off Greece

EU border agency helping search for missing crew after cargo ship sinks off Greece

The European Union’s border protection agency Frontex has joined the search for 12 crew members missing after a cargo ship sank in rough weather near the Greek island of Lesbos

ByThe Associated Press

November 27, 2023, 7:23 AM

Paramedics carry the body of a crew member of a ship, on the northeastern Aegean Sea island of Lesbos, Greece, Sunday, Nov. 26, 2023. A cargo ship sank off the Greek island of Lesbos early Sunday, leaving 13 crew members missing and one rescued, authorities said. The Raptor, registered in the Comoros, was on its way to Istanbul from Alexandria, Egypt, carrying 6,000 tons of salt, the coast guard said. It had a crew of 14, including eight Egyptians, four Indians and two Syrians, the coast guard said. (AP Photo/Panagiotis Balaskas)The Associated Press

ATHENS, Greece — The European Union's border protection agency Frontex has joined the search for 12 crew members missing after a cargo ship sank in rough weather the previous day near the Greek island of Lesbos, authorities said Monday. A 40-year-old Egyptian crew member was rescued on Sunday while the body of another Egyptian member of the crew was recovered by a commercial vessel that was assisting in the search. The Comoros-flagged Raptor was transporting salt from Alexandria, Egypt, to Istanbul and issued a distress signal before the vessel sank. It had a crew of 14, including eight Egyptians, four Indians and two Syrians, the coast guard said.

The ship reported a mechanical problem at 7 a.m. Sunday, sent a distress signal at 8:20 a.m. and shortly after disappeared about 4 1/2 nautical miles (8 kilometers) southwest of Lesbos, authorities said.

Frontex, which patrols the Lesbos area monitoring for illegal migration, sent a surveillance aircraft and a patrol boat to join the Greek coast guard search.