A ship crammed with thousands of sheep sank Sunday in Sudan’s Red Sea port of Suakin. It was carrying 15,800 sheep. The ship was supposed to carry only 9,000 sheep. The value of the lost livestock is around 14 million Saudi riyals.
KHARTOUM June 13: An overladen ship crammed with thousands of sheep sank Sunday in Sudan’s Red Sea port of Suakin drowning most animals on board but with all crew surviving, officials said.
The livestock vessel was exporting the animals from Sudan to Saudi Arabia when it sank after several thousand more animals were loaded on board than it was meant to carry.
“The ship, Badr 1, sank during the early hours of Sunday morning,” a senior Sudanese port official said. “It was carrying 15,800 sheep, which was beyond its load limits.”
According to dock workers the ship was supposed to carry only 9,000 sheep.
Omar al-Khalifa, the head of the national exporters’ association, said the ship took several hours to sink at the pier – a window that meant it “could have been rescued.” The value of the lost livestock “is around 14 million Saudi riyals (about four million dollars)”
Last month, a massive fire broke out in the cargo area of Suakin port, and causing heavy damage.
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