Five Sailors From 2 Tankers Burning In Kerch Strait Rescued - Russian Emergency Services

Five out of 31 sailors from two tankers that caught fire on Monday in the Kerch Strait had been rescued so far, a Crimean emergency services official told Sputnik

SIMFEROPOL (Crimea) (UrduPoint news / Sputnik - 21st January, 2019) Five out of 31 sailors from two tankers that caught fire on Monday in the Kerch Strait had been rescued so far, a Crimean emergency services official told Sputnik.

"There were a total of 31 people on board the two vessels, five of them have been rescued so far," the source said, adding that the body of one sailor was found.

Russia's Federal Agency of Maritime and River Transportation (Rosmorrechflot) earlier reported that two Tanzania-flagged vessels with crews totaling 31 sailors from Turkey and India caught fire in the Kerch Strait on Monday evening.

According to preliminary data, the fire on tankers started during the transfer of LNG between the two vessels.

Seven vessels of different classes are currently involved in the rescue operation, the official said.