Source: EFE
Fifteen of the 18 people aboard the 1361 M/T Venezuelan tuna purse seiner Calypso that capsized in the Caribbean were rescued Monday by the Colombian navy, authorities said.
The Calypso is owned by the Venezuelan company Avencasa - and is registered with the IATTC under vessel number 3475. It was built by San Diego Marine in 1972.
The search continues for the three missing crewmen, though their comrades hold out little hope that they will be found alive.
Taking part in the rescue attempt were a naval vessel, a helicopter, a maritime patrol aircraft and a group of coast guards using small fishing boats on loan.
Of those rescued, three were aided by a merchant fleet and taken to the Colombian coastal city of Barranquilla, while the other 12 are being treated at the Cartagena Naval Hospital.
Naval units continue to search for the three who are missing, though their fellow crew members now on land told the authorities they have little hope they are alive because they never managed to get out of the tuna-fishing boat.
The commander of Colombia’s Caribbean fleet, Adm. Henry Blain, told reporters that the shipwreck could have been caused by the crew going off course due to the bad weather that has recently impeded navigation in the Caribbean.
Archive picture of the tuna vessel Calypso at the Avencasa dock
