MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Falklands trawler “Ferrameles” sinks; all hands rescued

Trawler “Ferrameles” lost 80 miles off the Falklands

The Falkland Islands flagged trawler “Ferrameles” went down early Saturday morning in the Islands EEZ after having run into severe weather and sea conditions, reported Spanish sources later confirmed in Stanley.

All 31 crew members, mostly Spaniards were rescued by another fishing vessel "Loitador" and the captain by the "Castelo" belonging to the same Falklands fishing company, Eurofishing. The captain remained in the area until "Ferrameles" actually went down Saturday morning. She was listing and adrift after the crew abandoned the vessel when she was considered "technically" lost. "Most of the crew is from Galicia, good seamen, and all are in good health and spirit", reported broadcasting stations in Vigo, Spain. Ferrameles ZDLA2 was catching rock cod when she apparently was surprised by the bad weather. According to marine registries Ferrameles was built in Spain in 1986, originally belonged to a company Rampesca and has a gross tonnage of 1.072. Director of Eurofishing Tom Blake told the Falkland Islands Radio Stationn that in the early hours of Saturday February 2, the Ferralames suffered a loss of stability when bad weather caused the factory to fill with water. This occurred approximately 70 miles to the north of Stanley while the crew were all asleep. The First Officer called the Captain to tell him the vessel was listing dangerously and a state of emergency was called. The Captain of the vessel also told the Radio Station that the crew did not panic and acted calmly. He said exercises had taken place to deal with this type of emergency and he was very happy with his crew's reaction. He said they were, "â€Â¦shaken up but in good spirits." The Captain said there was no question with regard to the seaworthiness of the vessel and in fact the Ferralames could normally operate in much more difficult weather than other fishing vessels. He said it was just a combination of factors that caused the problem. The Captain thanked Falkland Islanders for their kindness to the crew when they reached Stanley. They were given food and donations of dry clothing. He said the crew had been assured by the owners that another vessel would be sent to collect them.