Second person rescued by Japanese Coast Guard taken to hospital after cattle ship sank during typhoon

The second person who was pulled out of the water after a cattle boat capsized off the coast of Japan was taken to hospital.

The Japanese Coast Guard said Friday afternoon that the man was not breathing or moving, but had not yet been seen by a doctor to confirm his condition.

It was pulled out of the water by the Japanese Coast Guard at 7.15am (Japan time), more than 48 hours after Gulf Livestock 1 sank during a typhoon.

There were dozens of crew members, nearly 6,000 cows, two New Zealanders and two Australians on board.

The identity of the man is not yet known.

The crew continues their search, using four ships and one plane.

Dramatic footage from Japanese authorities shows the difficult conditions rescuers face when a second typhoon approaches the area.

The ship left Napier on August 14 with about 5,800 head of cattle and headed for Jingtang port in Tangshan, China, when it encountered Typhoon Maysak.

Images shared by the coast guard show the only known survivor so far, 45-year-old Filipino Sareno Edvardo, being rescued. He was the ship’s first mate, which he says sunk.

Edvardo becomes excited after asking about the rest of the crew on board the ship and discovering that he was the only person rescued.

“Am I the only one? Are there no others? … I’m very lucky,” he tells Japanese Coast Guard personnel in English.

RNZ also reported that the coast guard has found dozens of dead cattle off the east coast of China.

Strong winds and torrential rains linked to Maysak have already hampered search efforts, and now another, Typhoon Haishen, is on the way.

Haishen is already in the Pacific Northwest, following through the East China Sea towards South Korea.

The Japan Meteorological Agency says Haishen is moving west at a speed of about 20 kilometers per hour as of noon Japan time Thursday.

In a statement, the Japan Coast Guard said it was “launching a second search and rescue mission before the expected typhoon,” RNZ reported.

Two Australians were also on board the ship. One of them was 25-year-old Queensland vet Lukas Orda, who is married with a 6-month-old baby, the Sydney morning herald reported.

Gulf Livestock 1 lost an engine during the first storm. It sent a distress signal around 1.40 a.m. Japanese time Wednesday from about 185 kilometers west of Amami Oshima Island, before it was apparently hit by a wave and capsized.

The ship is believed to have a history of engine problems, Safe New Zealand reports.

READ MORE:
* Cattle boat with two kiwis on board lost an engine and capsized, survivor says
* Why were there 6,000 head of cattle in the sea?
* The world’s largest livestock transport docks in Timaru

“During a trip in July 2019, the cattle boat was adrift for 25 hours while undergoing repairs following an engine failure,” said a spokesperson for Safe.

The company that exports the cattle, Australasian Global Exports, was reprimanded by the Australian Department of Agriculture in July 2020, following an alleged manipulation of ear tags on cows that were infected with infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR).

A second cattle ship, the Yangtza Harmony, sailed from New Plymouth on August 19 and is also currently in the East China Sea.

An MPI spokesperson confirmed today that the ship, with which it has been in contact every day, is out of the typhoon area and is due to dock in China at 4pm today (China time).

We believe there are 5,700 cows aboard the Yangtza Harmony.

The Japan Coast Guard responded to the call for help and managed to rescue a man, Sareno Edvardo, 45, from the Philippines.

“When it was turning over, an onboard advertisement told us to wear a life jacket,” Edvardo said, according to media reports.

“So I put on a life jacket and jumped into the sea.”

He did not see any other crew members since the time the ship sank, he said.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFAT) confirmed that it was providing consular assistance to the families of the two New Zealanders on board the ship.

The Ministry of Primary Industries said it had temporarily suspended its consideration of livestock export applications as a result of the incident.

“MPI wants to understand what happened while sailing the Gulf Livestock 1,” he said.

Australasian Global Exports, a licensed cattle exporter, chartered the ship.

Four of those on board were employees, while the rest were employees of the ship.

He was in contact with the families of the employees, he said.

Stuff You understand there was also a Singaporean vet on board, who has an Australian passport.

Live cattle export concerns

Safe Campaigns Manager Marianne Macdonald said the incident demonstrated the risks in the export trade live.

“These cows should never have been in the sea. This is a real crisis, and our thoughts are with the families of the crew missing with the ship. But questions remain, including why this trade is allowed to continue. “

In June last year, the government launched a review of the live animal export trade after hundreds of head of cattle exported from New Zealand and Australia were killed.

A spokeswoman for MPI said that before leaving Napier, a port veterinarian inspected the ship for animal welfare and disease.

There were no MPI personnel on board the ship when it disappeared, but between three and four “experienced ranchers” would have traveled with the cattle, the spokeswoman said.

Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor said one option being considered was a conditional ban on the export of live cattle.

“The continued export of cattle can be a risk for the New Zealand brand. The time has come to rethink this area and consider whether it fits with our values ​​as a country.

“When the animals leave New Zealand, we establish conditions that veterinarians consider world-class. But there have been incidents in recent years that highlight the fact that once animals leave New Zealand, we have a very limited ability to ensure their well-being when they arrive at their destination, ”O’Connor said at the time.