Ukraine-Bound Cargo Ship Sinks Near Greece After Running Aground, Captain And Bridge Officer Arrested

A Vanuatu-flagged cargo ship carrying soda ash sank off the Greek island of Andros early Wednesday after hitting rocks in the Aegean Sea, while all nine crew members were rescued safely by Greek authorities.

The vessel, identified as Corsage C, was sailing from Albania to Ukraine when the accident happened north of Andros.

The ship was carrying cargo reported as around 3,000 cubic meters of soda, while other reports said it had about 8,000 metric tons of soda ash onboard.

According to Greek coast guard officials, the ship sent out a mayday call at around 0100 GMT after running aground and taking in water.

Authorities said weather conditions in the area were good at the time, with winds between 3 and 4 on the Beaufort scale.

A rescue operation was launched immediately after the distress call. Greek authorities sent coast guard patrol vessels, an Air Force helicopter, nearby merchant ships and a fishing vessel to assist.

A passenger vessel was also directed to help locate the sinking ship.

Two crew members were rescued from the sea by a coast guard vessel, while the remaining seven were found on a rocky part of Andros island and brought to safety.

Officials said all nine crew members, including eight Turkish nationals and one Azerbaijani national, were taken safely to the port of Andros in good health.

The rescued sailors were later transported by ambulance to the Andros Health Center for precautionary medical checks.

Greek authorities said the cargo ship suffered water ingress after hitting rocks and later sank in the area north of the island.

The reason behind the grounding has not yet been confirmed. Greek officials said a preliminary investigation has been launched into the incident.

The Andros Port Authority detained the ship’s 52-year-old Turkish captain and the 32-year-old Turkish bridge officer who was on duty during the accident.

Authorities said they face charges related to negligence, causing danger and causing a shipwreck under the Greek Criminal Code.

Following the sinking, anti-pollution teams were sent to the area as a precaution against possible fuel leakage.

Two coast guard anti-pollution vessels and two additional vessels carrying anti-pollution equipment deployed floating barriers near the site.

Video released by the Greek coast guard showed crews placing yellow floating booms in the sea near the Andros shoreline to contain any possible marine pollution.

Officials said no visible signs of pollution had been reported from the sunken vessel so far, but monitoring operations were continuing.

The Turkey-based operator of the cargo ship had not commented on the incident at the time of reporting.

References: Reuters, Turkiye Today