17 dead, 68 missing as cargo ship sinks off Madagascar's northeastern coast
At least 17 people lost their lives, while 68 are still missing as a cargo ship carrying 130 illegal passengers sank off Madagascar's northeastern coast.
- World News
- 2 min read
At least 17 people lost their lives when a cargo ship carrying 130 illegal passengers sank off Madagascar's northeastern coast. Officials announced on Monday that 68 more individuals have been missing since the tragic incident. As per a report from the Maritime and River Port Agency, approximately 45 passengers were rescued from the Indian Ocean's waters.
Further, the director-general of the agency Jean Edmond Randrianantenaina announced that that search and rescue operations for other passengers were ongoing with the assistance of local volunteers, TRT world reported.
According to the report, the cargo vessel named Francia had left Antanambe in the district of Mananara Nord during the early hours of Monday. The ship was on its way to the port of Soanierana Ivongo in the south. Further, the port authority chief Randrianantenaina stated that as the vessel was registered under the cargo ship category, it was illegal as well as not permitted to take people off the Antanambe, which is not even an official port in Madagascar, Associated Press reported.
Officials describe how the cargo ship sank off Madagascar's northeastern coast
According to the port chief, the sinking of the cargo ship was believed to be caused by a hole in the hull. Randrianantenaina said, "According to the information we were able to gather, water entered the engine room. The water started to rise and it swallowed up all the engines," Associated Press reported.
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As a result of this, the ship started sinking, he said. He further clarified that the agency is not aware as to when the water started rising, but started intervening at 9 a.m. (local time). The rescue operations for missing people are being continued by three boats from the national navy and the maritime agency, he added.
Furthermore, Adrien Fabrice Ratsimbazafy, another port authority employee, claimed that the boat foundered on a reef following a "technical problem" with the engine. In the island country off the southeastern coast of Africa, a squad of security forces was dispatched to the scene, and an inquiry was launched, as per TRT World.