A young crew member on board the Norwegian Coast Guard ship KV Nordkapp was reported missing over the weekend and is believed to have fallen or been swept overboard into the icy Barents Sea. A major search on Saturday and Sunday was eventually called off.
“The missing person is a young male crew member who was on board as part of his first military service,” Endre Barane of the Norwegian naval defense told the news service Vesterålen Online. A search of the sea around the vessel was conducted with the help of a rescue helicopter, to no avail.
The young crew member was last seen on board the vessel at around 2:30am Saturday. The vessel was, at the time, sailing around 93 kilometers north-northwest of Bjørnøya. An extensive search of the area was carried out using the helicopter and rescue vessels, while the KV Nordkapp sailed on to the eastern side of Bjørnøya, located between the Norwegian mainland and Svalbard. Military officials reported that the recruit’s family had been notified.
newsinenglish.no staff
