Rescuers are searching for 54 people who were on board a South Korean vessel that sank near the Chukotka Peninsula in Russia’s Far East.
An emergency on board the Oryong 501 trawler started sometime before 17:30 local time (0530 GMT) on Monday, when information the ship being in peril was sent to local rescue services. The vessel reportedly did not send a distress call.
There were 62 people on board, rescuers said. Eight people were recovered alive, but one died later due to overexposure. The remaining 54 people are not accounted for and are feared dead.
Four Russian fishing boats were the first to respond to the disaster and led the rescue effort. But their task is a difficult one due to nightfall and a stormy weather in the Bering Sea, where the Korean ship sank. Waves up to six meters high and wind gusts up to 27 meters per second hit the vessels, Interfax reported, citing the rescue services.
One of the people rescued is a Russian citizen, an official from the local fishery regulator, the report said. The sailor whose body has been identified is from South Korea. Other crewmembers include citizens of Indonesia, the Philippines and South Korea.