Reuters AlertNet Lite - Whirlpool suspected in Taiwan shipwreck

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Whirlpool suspected in Taiwan shipwreck

03 Dec 2007 05:03:58 GMT
Source: Reuters

TAIPEI, Dec 3 (Reuters) - A Panama-registered freighter may have sunk in a whirlpool last week, dragging down as many as 27 crew members within five minutes after the ship was struck by a giant wave off Taiwan, the coast guard said on Monday.

The eddy between currents about 35 nautical miles east of Taiwan's northern tip is suspected of sinking the ship, which was carrying iron ore and an Indonesian crew of 28.

One crew member was found alive, clinging to his life vest, a day after the freighter went down last Tuesday.

"A whirlpool effect is possible," said Taiwan Coast Guard spokesman Hsieh Ching-ching after hearing the survivor's account.

"Some of the sailors couldn't put on their lifejackets in time, so there are some who didn't make it up."

Typhoon Mitag generated stormy seas east of Taiwan last week after killing about 19 in the Philippines.

Although the coast guard normally calls off searches within 72 hours, it has extended its hunt for the ship to a seventh day, using 12 boats and a helicopter. (Reporting by Ralph Jennings, editing by Nick Macfie and Rosalind Russell)

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Last updated:Mon Dec 3 05:03:02 2007