The search-and-rescue ship Rubin, while scoring the area off the southwestern coast of the island of Feklistov for possible survivors from sunken cargo ship the M/V Amurskaya, has found a raft, the State Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre of Russia’s Transportation Ministry. There were no people on the bright red raft designed for 20 people. The raft has been carefully inspected and photographed.
On October 28, the M/V Amurskaya laden with 700 or 750 tons of gold ore issued a distress call in the area of Shantarsky islands in the Khabarovsk region. An emergency beacon of the vessel was sending signals of distress. There were nine or eleven crew members, all Russian nationals, on board the ship. The M/V Amurskaya departed the port of Kiran having no permission and approvals from the local safety supervising authorities. The cargo exceeded the capacity of the vessel, which could carry only 611 tons. Besides, the investigators found that the vessels was not designed for the transportation of bulk cargoes and did not get permission to transport raw materials.