Israel Navy commandos and members of the air force’s 669 airborne rescue units work to extricate Ukrainian sailors from the frigid waters some 80 kilometers (48 miles) off the coast of Haifa on motzei shabbos. The vessel, the Salla 2 cargo freighter went down on the way to the Port of Haifa. NATO forces rescued at least one person too. One sailor is reportedly in a Beirut hospital.

Rambam Medical Center officials report one of the victims is in an intensive care unit as a result of severe hypothermia, and four others who were in moderate condition upon their arrival have been upgraded to light.

Navy and air forces teams on Sunday are continuing the search for seven sailors who remain missing. No one seems to know what caused the ship carrying building materials to sink.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)