Two dead, four missing after ships collide in Adriatic Sea

ROME – A Turkish cargo ship collided with another merchant vessel and sank near a foggy Italian port in the northern Adriatic on Sunday, killing two crew members and leaving four others missing in cold, rough seas, officials said.

Coast Guard Cmdr. Franco Maltese said six crew members were initially rescued and brought to the port of Marina di Ravenna; one of those rescued later died in the hospital. He said searchers spotted what was believed to be a corpse in the choppy waters, and Ravenna’s fire department confirmed that that body was found and brought ashore.

The search for the four still missing was suspended due to darkness.

The 290-foot Turkish ship Gokbel went down after colliding with the 320-foot Belize-flagged Lady Aziza, which was still seaworthy and was being brought to port as part of the investigation, Maltese said. No one was hurt aboard the Lady Aziza.

The Gokbel was leaving port and the Lady Aziza was entering when the collision occurred, he said.