One dead, others rescued as Nigerian tugboat sinks in South Africa

South African authorities have rescued 12 crew members from a Nigerian tugboat that sank off the country’s coast late Saturday night, with one confirmed dead and five still missing.

The vessel, identified as LEO, reportedly had 18 people on board. It had travelled to South Africa for repairs and ran aground about 18 nautical miles offshore in stormy waters between Cape Town and Durban while returning to Lagos.

The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, disclosed on Monday that the South African Ministry of Transportation had formally informed Nigerian authorities of the incident.

In a statement released in Abuja by her Special Assistant on Communication and New Media, Magnus Eze, the minister confirmed one fatality and said search and rescue operations for the five missing crew members are ongoing.

“The South Africa Ministry of Transportation informed us of this development. The South African Maritime Safety Authority has also reported that survivors are being conveyed to Port Elizabeth, where officials from the Nigeria High Commission are en route to receive them,” the statement read.

Authorities have indicated that further updates will follow as rescue and recovery efforts continue.