The New York Times :
As a typhoon barreled through East Asia on Thursday, the Japanese Coast Guard was searching for a livestock ship that capsized in the East China Sea with dozens of crew members and nearly 6,000 cows aboard.
A patrol ship rescued one crew member just before midnight Wednesday, hours after the vessel sent a distress signal in the middle of the night from about 100 nautical miles west of southwestern Japan, officials said.
A photo of the rescue released by the Coast Guard showed a crew member bobbing in dark waters amid choppy seas.
The rescued man, identified as Sareno Edvardo, 45, of the Philippines, was hospitalized on the Japanese island of Amami Oshima. Yuichiro Higashi, a spokesman for the Coast Guard, said Thursday that patrol ships were continuing to search for other crew members.
Edvardo told the Coast Guard that the ship had capsized after losing an engine and being hit by a wave that flooded it with water, the Coast Guard spokesman said.
“When it was capsizing, an onboard announcement instructed us to wear a life jacket,” Edvardo said, according to the Coast Guard. “So I wore a life jacket and jumped into the sea.” He told the Coast Guard that from the time the ship capsized until he was fished out of the water, he did not see any other crew members.
The ship was believed to be carrying 43 crew members, including 39 from the Philippines, the Japanese Coast Guard said. The foreign ministries of New Zealand and Australia each said that two of their citizens were among the crew. Officials said they were providing consular assistance to the crew members’ families but could not comment further because of privacy concerns.
The episode raises fresh questions about transporting live animals by sea.
Millions of cattle and sheep are transported by sea every year, a trade that generates hefty profits for meat producers in countries like Australia and New Zealand. But animal rights advocates say that such journeys are often too long, regulations are not up to scratch and the rules are often flouted. Activists say that the vessels are often converted cargo ships that do not meet the high standards of animal welfare and that heat stress, overcrowding and the spread of disease are regular features of the journeys.
The rescue effort Thursday was unfolding as Typhoon Maysak lashed parts of South Korea with heavy rain and gusts of up to 78 mph, flooding some homes and leaving hundreds of thousands of others without power.
As a typhoon barreled through East Asia on Thursday, the Japanese Coast Guard was searching for a livestock ship that capsized in the East China Sea with dozens of crew members and nearly 6,000 cows aboard.
A patrol ship rescued one crew member just before midnight Wednesday, hours after the vessel sent a distress signal in the middle of the night from about 100 nautical miles west of southwestern Japan, officials said.
A photo of the rescue released by the Coast Guard showed a crew member bobbing in dark waters amid choppy seas.
The rescued man, identified as Sareno Edvardo, 45, of the Philippines, was hospitalized on the Japanese island of Amami Oshima. Yuichiro Higashi, a spokesman for the Coast Guard, said Thursday that patrol ships were continuing to search for other crew members.
Edvardo told the Coast Guard that the ship had capsized after losing an engine and being hit by a wave that flooded it with water, the Coast Guard spokesman said.
“When it was capsizing, an onboard announcement instructed us to wear a life jacket,” Edvardo said, according to the Coast Guard. “So I wore a life jacket and jumped into the sea.” He told the Coast Guard that from the time the ship capsized until he was fished out of the water, he did not see any other crew members.
The ship was believed to be carrying 43 crew members, including 39 from the Philippines, the Japanese Coast Guard said. The foreign ministries of New Zealand and Australia each said that two of their citizens were among the crew. Officials said they were providing consular assistance to the crew members’ families but could not comment further because of privacy concerns.
The episode raises fresh questions about transporting live animals by sea.
Millions of cattle and sheep are transported by sea every year, a trade that generates hefty profits for meat producers in countries like Australia and New Zealand. But animal rights advocates say that such journeys are often too long, regulations are not up to scratch and the rules are often flouted. Activists say that the vessels are often converted cargo ships that do not meet the high standards of animal welfare and that heat stress, overcrowding and the spread of disease are regular features of the journeys.
The rescue effort Thursday was unfolding as Typhoon Maysak lashed parts of South Korea with heavy rain and gusts of up to 78 mph, flooding some homes and leaving hundreds of thousands of others without power.
