Body recovered in Irish Sea rescue effort
Rescuers searching for six people missing in the Irish Sea have recovered a body.
A search operation was launched overnight after the hull of a cargo vessel cracked and began to sink 20 miles off the coast of north-west Wales.
Eight crew members on board the ship went into the water.
Two were rescued early this morning and this afternoon the Coastguard has confirmed that the body of a man has been recovered.
Five others remain missing.
Coastguard helicopters from Dublin, Waterford and Sligo are assisting Holyhead Coastguard with the search operation. Britain's Prince William was a co-pilot aboard one of the helicopters involved in the mission, it has emerged.
It's understood the stormy conditions at sea are hampering their progress.
The 81-metre Swanland cargo carrier, registered in the Cook Islands, was carrying 3,000 tonnes of limestone from Colwyn Bay to Cowes in the Isle of Wight.
Holyhead Coastguard watch manager Ray Carson said: “The two men recovered from the water were brought here before going to the hospital. I think they are OK and are just suffering from shock.
“In broken English and through drawing a diagram, the second officer told us the ship was hit by an enormous wave. It rolled the ship and it broke its back. He said this led to a catastrophic failure of the vessel.”
