Three crew are feared lost after a cargo ship sank in the Black Sea on Saturday.
The 3,400-dwt Mohammed Z (built 1988) went down 26 nautical miles off Sfantu Gheorghe, Spotmedia reported.
Eight other crew members were rescued.
The search operation remained ongoing on Sunday, coordinated by the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre of Romania’s naval authority.
An alert was received in the early hours of Saturday and three search and rescue vessels were sent to the scene.
“Support was also requested from the Border Police, which sent the MAI 2110 and MAI 1106 vessels to the accident site,” the navy said in a statement.
“Additionally, two nearby commercial vessels were promptly alerted to join the search and rescue operation for human lives,” it added.
Romanian authorities have also used a helicopter in the operation.
The Tanzania-flag ship had 11 seafarers on board: nine from Syria and two from Egypt.
The survivors were picked up by Turkish owner Star Ship’s 5,400-dwt cargo vessel Michel (built 1990), which was close to the scene.
All the missing men are Syrian.
Investigation to begin
No cause has been identified for the loss of the vessel, but an investigation will be opened.
AIS data showed the Mohammed Z left Mersin in Turkey on 12 May. It was bound for Sulina in Romania.
The incident happened close to the Ukrainian border.
MarineTraffic reported the Michel had changed its route to Bulgaria from Odesa, while the rescued crew members were taken to Constanta in Romania for medical treatment.
One man had suffered two separate unspecified injuries.
The vessel is operated by AMZ Marine Shipping of Turkey, which could not be contacted for comment.
The last port state control inspection took place in Egypt last month. Four deficiencies were found.
The emergency muster list was not updated, a light was missing on a lifebuoy, a signalling lamp was inoperative and machinery was found to be unsafe.
The ship was last detained in 2018, in Japan. The vessel’s insurer is not known.
