One person was killed and 11 were missing after the cargo ship they were traveling on sank off the coast of Turkey during heavy storms, rescue teams said.
The Turkish-flagged Kafkametler sank on Sunday after hitting a breakwater outside the port of the city of Eregli, about 200 kilometers east of Istanbul.
Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu said the ship, which was headed to the port of Izmir, in western Turkey, hit the breakwater several times before sinking.
The search and rescue operation was postponed for several hours due to bad weather, but as the situation improved, rescue teams continued their work and found the body of the ship’s cook today, Uraloglu said.
İçişleri Bakanı Yerlikaya: Zonguldak Ereğli”den İzmir”en gitmek üzere limandan ayrılan Türk bayraklı Kafkametler adlı kuru yük gemisi sürüklenerek mendireğe çarpmak suretiylemaalesef batmıştır. Gemiden bulunan 13 Türk mürettebattan 1 arkadaşımızın cansız bedenine ulaşılmıştır. pic.twitter.com/AYLbgnCnep
– TRT Haber Canlı (@trthabercanli) November 20, 2023
Severe storms that hit northwestern Turkey caused widespread damage and disruption on Sunday, including the breakup of another cargo ship and the evacuation of a prison.
The Cameroon-flagged Pallada broke in half due to adverse weather conditions after running aground in five-metre waves near Eregli, the Directorate General of Maritime said, indicating that all 13 crew members had been rescued safely.
SON DAKİKA | Içişleri Bakanı Yerlikaya:
“Zonguldak Ereğli”den İzmir”e gitmek üzere limandan ayrılan Türk bayraklı Kafkametler und kuru yük gemisi sürüklenerek mendireğe çarpmak suretiylemaalesef batmıştır.
Gemiden bulunan 13 Türk mürettebattan 1 arkadaşımızın mo… pic.twitter.com/gMFLSPp0tS
– TRHaber (@trhaber_com) November 20, 2023
Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said prisoners were being transferred from Eregli prison to neighboring facilities due to rising water levels.
Elsewhere in Turkey, four people were killed in floods caused by heavy rains in the southeastern provinces of Diyarbakir and Batman, and around 50 people were injured, officials said.
In neighboring Bulgaria, strong winds, rain and snow caused two deaths on Sunday and disrupted power supplies.
Authorities have declared a state of emergency in the Black Sea city of Varna.
Source: DN
