The U.S. Coast Guard says rescuers are still searching for the remaining four crew members of a cargo ship that overturned near St. Simons Island Sunday.
Twenty people have already been rescued.
The remaining crew members of the Golden Ray Cargo ship, who are South Korean, are still trapped on the vessel.
A @USCG Air Station Savannah helicopter crew and port partners rescued 20 people early this morning after the Golden Ray, a 656-foot vehicle carrier, was reported disabled and listing. 4 crew members are still unaccounted for. Video available here: https://t.co/WxHwVs9LPN pic.twitter.com/dD92UPuHH9— USCGSoutheast (@USCGSoutheast) September 8, 2019
CNN reports that the crew members are trapped in the engine room.
Coast Guard Capt. John Reed says a fire on the ship slowed recovery efforts.
“As smoke and flames began to appear, our crews along with the Glynn County heavy rescue team assessed that the situation was too risky to further go inside the vessel.”
A damage assessment team from the @USCG Atlantic Strike Team prepares to depart from #USCG Station Brunswick. The team is assessing the impacts of the Golden Ray and are just one of many specialized teams working diligently in the complex response. pic.twitter.com/gU4cPYV96Y— USCGSoutheast (@USCGSoutheast) September 8, 2019
Federal, state and local agencies are working to stabilize the ship so that the search may continue.
Officials say no pollution was released because of the incident, although a contingency plan is in effect.
The Port of Brunswick is currently closed to vessel traffic, with an emergency safety zone set up in St. Simons Sound.
The cause of the accident is still under investigation.
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