Greece: 13 crew missing after cargo ship sinks near Lesbos

Only one of the 14 crew members has so far been rescued

Greece on Sunday launched a rescue operation for 13 people missing after a cargo ship sank in gale-force wins off the Greek island of Lesbos.

One crew member from the vessel, named RAPTOR, was airlifted to the hospital by a navy helicopter, the coastguard said, describing him as “in a state of shock.”

The fate of the other 13, described by local media as 11 Egyptians, two Syrians and one Indian, was not immediately clear.

What do we know about the incident?

The Comoros-registered freighter sent out a distress signal due to a mechanical failure at 7.00 a.m. local time (0500 GMT) on Sunday.

Around an hour later, the captain reported that the vessel was listing, and activated the “mayday” distress signal before disappearing from the radar, AFP news agency reported, citing local officials.

The heavily-laden vessel was believed to have taken on water in the hold due to strong waves, causing it to list and sink, according to Greece’s ANA news agency.

The ship went down 4.5 nautical miles (8.3 kilometers) southwest of Lesbos, near the coast of Turkey.

The 106-meter vessel was traveling from Dekheila, Egypt to Istanbul.

The vessel, operated by a company based in Lebanon, was reportedly carrying salt.

Rescue hampered by severe weather

Five cargo ships, three coast guard vessels, air force and navy helicopters as well as a navy frigate joined the rescue effort.

A severe storm has been raging throughout south-eastern Europe since Saturday.

The Greek Meteorological Office (EMY) said winds are gusting up to force 11 in places.

As a result, almost all ferry connections between the Greek islands and the mainland have been canceled.

Earlier this month, a historic Greek warship was damaged by gale force winds after repeatedly striking the dock.

The country has been struck by repeated flooding over recent months after being hit by a series of storms.

Central Greece was devastated in September by large amounts of rain dumped by Storm Daniel, destroying crops and killing tens of thousands of farm animals in the heart of Greece’s agricultural production.

mm/wmr (AFP, dpa, Reuters)