ROSTOV-ON-DON, October 12. /TASS/. Two people have died as a floating crane was hauled in the Kerch Strait that connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, a source in the regional emergency services told TASS on Wednesday.
- Putin calls construction of bridge across Kerch Strait historic mission
- Transport minister: Sanctions won't affect Kerch bridge construction
- Construction of Kerch Strait Bridge to Crimea to cost $3.54 bln — ordering customer
- Construction of railway approach tracks to Kerch Strait Bridge is on schedule — ministry
"The incident occurred at 03.40 Moscow Time. The tugboat was hauling the floating crane, which sank due to unfavorable weather conditions. There were 7 people aboard, five of them were rescued, two others sank," the source said, adding that the crane was on its way from Port Kavkaz (in Russia’s Krasnodar territory) to Sevastopol.
The Russian Emergencies Ministry’s department in Crimea reported earlier in the day that the floating crane heading for the port in the city of Kerch (in the east of Crimea) had sunk four kilometers off the coast near the settlement of Livadiya on Wednesday.
The accident is not linked to the Kerch bridge construction, according to a project ordering customer.
"The accident with the floating crane is not linked to the bridge’s construction," he said.
According to preliminary data, the crane sank due to bad weather. On Tuesday, the Emergencies Ministry’s department in Crimea issued a storm warning for October 12-14. Heavy rain, thunderstorms and winds of 20-25 meters per second are expected in the Black Sea peninsula at night on October 14.