56 Dead as Russian trawler Sinks
Trawler with 132 crew sinks in freezing waters; rescue operation seeks missing crew. MOSCOW, April 2 (Reuters) - A Russian trawler sank in icy seas off Russia's far eastern Kamchatka peninsula on Thursday, killing at least 56 of the 132 crew, the emergencies ministry said on Thursday. Sixty-three people were rescued but 13 were still unaccounted for, hours after the Dalniy Vostok fishing vessel sank in the Sea of Okhotsk so quickly that its captain, who drowned, did not manage to send a distress signal. It was not immediately clear why the 26-year-old ship had sunk but a local official said the crew may have violated safety rules by overloading it, affecting its balance. Russia has a long history of road, air and sea disasters, many caused by negligence or violation of safety regulations.
Russia Upgrading Northern Sea Route Safety Infrastructure
Construction of a chain of rescue centers on the shores of the Northern Sea Route has already started. Russia is upgrading infrastructure along the Northern Sea Route. Three large and seven smaller emergency centers will be built from Murmansk in the West to Chukotka in the East. According to a new Russian rescue concept, three main Arctic Fire and Rescue Centers will be set up in Siberia, the North-West and Far East Russia. The rest of the centers will be their subdivisions or branches, said Vladimir Puchkov, Russian Minister of Emergency Situations. Construction of the first centers has now started. One such center with 60 employees is being set up in Dudinka in the Krasnoyarsk Krai. The Siberian center will be equipped with helipads.
