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| Situation Update No. 4 Ref.no.: VI-20091217-24201-LBY
Situation Update No. 4
On 2009-12-20 at 06:08:38 [UTC]
Event: Vehicle Accident
Location: Libya Mediterranean Sea About 11 nautical miles off the port of Tripoli
Number of Deads: 2 person(s)
Number of Missing: 40 person(s)
Number of Evacuated: 40 person(s)
Situation: A 40th survivor was found Saturday from a ship which sank in rough seas off northern Lebanon two days earlier, even as officials said hope was fading of any more rescues. The ltest survivor, a Filipino, was recovered near Syria’s Mediterranean coast further north, bringing to 40 the number of people rescued, with 11 dead bodies also found, as search efforts continued. “Syrian authorities found a survivor off the coast of Tartus aboard a raft, a Philippines national named Wilson Vincent,” port authority chief Ahmad Tamer told AFP in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli. “We have checked and his name was on the list. His condition is stable.” But Tamer added that hope of finding any others was fading. Rescuer teams have been battling rough conditions in the hunt for survivors from the Danny F II, a freighter carrying 82 people which went down in a storm on Thursday with its British captain among those believed to have drowned. The search “is ongoing, but we’ve covered our waters, and sadly there don’t seem to be any signs of more survivors or bodies,” a Lebanese military spokesman told AFP Saturday. Lebanese vessels with a medical crew and three boats of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) have taken part in the extended search. Syrian boats were also involved, as was a British helicopter from Cyprus. But officials were hesitant to say the 31 people still missing were presumed dead after two days of heavy winds and torrential rain. “It’s hard to say what we can expect, as nearly 48 hours have passed,” said UNIFIL deputy spokesman Andrea Tenenti. We will continue for the day and hope that we will be able to find more survivors.” The Lebanese Red Cross said the survivors in hospital were mainly suffering from “exhaustion, broken bones and concussion.” Most of them were Filipinos, Pakistanis and Uruguayan, the military spokesman said earlier, adding that a Russian, a Ukrainian and a Lebanese were among those saved. The Danny F II capsized during a storm about 11 nautical miles off Tripoli after sending a distress signal at 3:55 P.M. (1355 GMT). |  | | | |
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