Drifting vessel spotted in the Laptev Sea
In the morning of September 3rd, a drifting vessel was found in the Laptev Sea, believed to be a stricken ship the TB-0012 owned by Russian Transit LLC, home port of St. Petersburg, the State Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (SMRCC) of the Russian Ministry of Transportation said.
Currently, the salvagers are preparing for towing operation of the damaged ship to the Russian port of Tiksi. The shipowner has been informed about the vessel. The vessel is loaded with 2 tons of cargo and 12 tons of diesel fuel.
Earlier reports said that on August 15, 2012 the TB-0012 main engine broke and the ship was dead in the water.
The ship with 12 people on board (six crewmembers and six passengers) was bound for the port of Tiksi, the Belkovsky Island (Novosibirsky Islands).
The people have been successfully rescued to safety by the tanker Lenaneft 2055 (shipowner "LORP") and the stricken vessel started drifting towards Tiksi.