All 12 seafarers have been rescued after their cargoship was hit by a fire off Italy
The vessel issued a distress signal on Wednesday 180 miles south-east of Catania, the coast guard said.
Italian media identified the ship as the 2,900-dwt Bellatrix (built 1978), which was heading to Samsun in Turkey.
The master said the blaze in the engine room was no longer controllable.
Three coast guard vessels and an aircraft were sent to the scene, while all nearby ships were alerted.
The crew were picked up by the 4,700-dwt Arife (built 2002), operated by Gemiciler of Turkey.
The ship will be reached in the next day by a tug hired by the owner to take it into Aliaga in Turkey.
No pollution has been reported.
The vessel is listed as operated by MD Shipping of Ukraine.
It was detained in Samsun in January 2019 with 21 deficiencies, including one relating to personal equipment for fire safety and another regarding lifebuoys.
