World

6 remain missing after Black Sea ship fire

22 of January 2019

In this video grab provided by the Kerch.fm web portal, the two vessels, the Maestro and the Candiy, on fire near the Kerch Strait linking the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, in Kerch, Crimea, Monday, Jan. 21, 2019. Two Tanzanian-flagged commercial vessels caught fire in the Black Sea, leaving at least 10 sailors dead, Russian officials said, and seven sailors are reported still missing. (Kerch.fm via AP),In this video grab provided by the Kerch.fm web portal, the two vessels, the Maestro and the Candiy, on fire near the Kerch Strait linking the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, in Kerch, Crimea, Monday, Jan. 21, 2019. Two Tanzanian-flagged commercial vessels caught fire in the Black Sea, leaving at least 10 sailors dead, Russian officials said, and seven sailors are reported still missing. (Kerch.fm via AP)

MOSCOW (AP) — Ambulance crews on the Crimean Peninsula have transported a dozen survivors of a ship fire to hospitals while six of their crewmates have remained missing in the Black Sea. At least 14 sailors died in the tragedy.

Two Tanzanian-flagged tankers caught fire Monday while fuel was being pumped from one tanker to another. The blaze spread quickly, prompting the crews to jump overboard.

Russian officials said 12 of 32 crewmembers have been rescued. The survivors were taken Tuesday to hospitals on the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014.

The ships have continued burning. Media reports said both tankers, the Maestro and the Candy, belonged to a Turkish company, Milenyum Denizcilik Gemi. It was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2015 for fuel deliveries to Syria.