Thousands of sheep were feared dead a day after a vessel carrying almost 15,000 of them overturned off the Romanian coast, leading to renewed calls for a ban on the controversial sea transport of livestock.
The Queen Hind, bound for Saudi Arabia with 14,600 sheep aboard, capsized on Sunday for as yet unknown reasons shortly after leaving Midia port on the Black Sea in eastern Romania.
The crew — 20 Syrians and one Lebanese national — were rescued along with 32 sheep.
Rescuers on Monday continued to try to tilt back the Palau-flagged vessel and tow it to the dockless than a kilometer away, battling stormy weather and rough seas.
No one has been able to board the vessel and check its hold but photos and video footage distributed by rights group Animals International showed bodies of sheep pressed against openings along the side of the ship and dozens floating in the sea near the ship.
“Today we are trying to eliminate the cargo on the upper deck (bales of fodder) to reduce the weight of the ship and put it back in a floating position to tow it to the port,” a spokeswoman for the rescue services, Ana-Maria Stoica, told AFP.
She said once this was done, rescuers would be able to extract the sheep. “We hope that some of them are still alive,” she added.
Mihaita Gheba, chief of the local veterinary authority, said the dead sheep would be burned while surviving ones would be returned to the breeder.
In other news – Office S.E.X tape of Tshwane mayor Stevens Mokgalapa & MMC Sheila Senkubuge Leaks
In audio circulating from an anonymous source, Tshwane mayor Stevens Mokgalapa can allegedly be heard having s.e.x with the City’s roads and transport MMC, Sheila Senkubuge, supposedly in her office.
Executive Mayor Stevens Mokgalapa and his Roads and Transport Member of the Mayoral Committee, Sheila-Lynn Senkubuge, on Sunday remained mum on an allegation they had s.e.x inside a municipal office. continue reading
Source: AFP