German frigate rescues Syrian crew off Cyprus coast

A German frigate, the Frankfurt, rescued two seamen with first and second degree burns from a Syrian cargo ship lying off the coast of Cyprus that had caught fire in the engine room early Monday.

The German navy vessel, part of the multi-national force patrolling the Lebanese coast, airlifted the pair by helicopter to a nearby hospital in Limassol.

The cargo ship, the Saint Vincent-registered Silina that had just delivered its cargo to the Syrian port of Tartus, was lying 48 nautical miles east of the Cyprus coast, when it sent out a distress signal just before dawn, alerting the Cyprus authorities, said Department of Merchant Shipping inspector Andreas Constantinou.

 “It appears that there was a fire in the engine room and the remaining crew of ten were expected to be brought to Limassol port by the Germany navy vessel,” he said, adding that the cargo ship was being towed back to Syria.