TRIPOLI, Lebanon (Reuters) - Dozens of people were missing on Thursday after a ship carrying livestock sank in the Mediterranean off Lebanon in stormy weather, Lebanese naval sources said.
They said three U.N. peacekeeping vessels – one Italian and two German --, Lebanese army rescue boats and Cyprus-based British forces were in the area trying to save the crew of Panamanian-flagged Danny II which capsized in early evening 17 km (11 miles) off the northern Lebanese port of Tripoli.
At least 19 people were rescued and the search was on for the remaining 64 who were believed to be on board. The ship was transporting 43,000 sheep from Uruguay to Tartous in Syria. The crew were mostly from the Philippines and Pakistan.
High waves and wind were hampering the night search, the sources said. Rescue workers said people could not survive more than a maximum of 10 hours in the waters in current weather conditions.
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