11 Die in capsizing of Spanish boat off Canada
Madrid, Feb 15 (EFE).- Three more bodies were found late Tuesday in Atlantic waters off the Canadian island of Newfoundland where a Spanish fishing vessel capsized in rough seas, bringing the death toll to 10, Spain’s National Maritime Rescue Coordination Center said.
Three of those aboard the Villa de Pitanxo were rescued alive, while 11 others remain missing.
Two of the three additional bodies were recovered by a Canadian vessel, while the third was pulled from the water by the crew of a Portuguese fishing boat, Spanish Maritime Rescue said.
The Ville de Pitanxo, which was based in Marin, a port in the northwestern Spanish region of Galicia, went down some 250 nautical miles (460 km) east of the Newfoundland coast.
A number of fishing vessels, including the Playa de Menduiña 2 from Galicia, were participating in the search and rescue operation, Canadian authorities said.
The effort continued to be hampered by seas of 4 m (13 ft) and visibility of only around 500 m.
The Villa de Pitanxo had a crew of 24: 16 Spaniards, five Peruvians and three Ghanaians, according to Maritime Rescue, which said that the ship issued two alerts at 04:24 GMT, but could not be reached via radio.
One of the Pitanxo’s four life rafts was found by the crew of the Menduiña 2 carrying the three survivors and four bodies. Canadian authorities located two other life rafts “completely empty” and the fourth is still missing. EFE
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