British cargo ship SINKS in the North Sea leaving one dead and four missing after colliding with another bulk carrier – as P&O cruise ship Iona joins rescue mission

A British freighter sank this morning after colliding with another bulk carrier in the North Sea, leaving one dead and four missing. A P&O cruise ship was diverted to join the desperate search for the remaining crew members.

The British-flagged ship Verity collided with another cargo ship Polesie about 22 kilometers southwest of the German island of Helgoland at around 3 a.m. this morning, the German Central Command for Maritime Emergencies said.

The 90-metre-long ship, which was carrying steel from Bremen in Germany to the British port of Immingham, sank after the impact and rescuers have launched a desperate mission to find the missing crew.

The P&O cruise ship Iona, which left Southampton three days ago for Hamburg, Rotterdam and Bruges in Belgium, has now joined the search for survivors.

But it has since emerged that the body of a man has been recovered while four crew members remain missing, the German Sea Rescue Society said, adding that two more people had been recovered alive from the water.

Rescuers are still desperately searching for the four remaining crew members, but the search in the fifteen-degree Celsius North Sea is hampered by wind speeds of 50 km per hour, waves of 3 meters high and poor visibility due to fog.

Passengers on board the Iona have told MailOnline how they were woken at 5.30am by an emergency announcement from the captain about the accident, with one saying everyone was ‘panicking’.

Another passenger, who only wanted to be identified as Mr Johnson, said he saw the P&O cruise ship searching the water with floodlights this morning.

He said: ‘We are on holiday but this is a very tragic situation. “We cannot fathom how the people involved in the collision must feel, along with the families of those who remain missing or have lost their lives.”

Emergency command said any victims rescued from the water could receive medical care aboard the cruise ship Iona.

The German Sea Rescue Society later said one body had been recovered and two people had been rescued. Another four crew members are missing.

The other ship, the Bahamas-flagged Polesie, which had left Hamburg for La Coruna in Spain, remained afloat after the collision with 22 people on board. The Verity was the smaller ship with a length of almost 90 meters, compared to the 295 meters of the Polesie.

The P&O cruise ship Iona, which can accommodate 5,200 holidaymakers and 1,800 crew, has joined several ships in the search for Verity, including the rescue cruisers ‘Hermann Marwede’ and ‘Bernhard Gruben’.

Verity’s owner, Faversham Ships Ltd, is based on the Isle of Wight and said it had no comment on the situation.

In 2017, another cargo ship called The Islay Trade, owned and operated by Faversham Ships, ran aground near Margate Harbour. The freighter’s main bid “became uncertain of the vessel’s position and was overwhelmed,” according to a Maritime Accident Investigation Branch report seen by The times.

A passenger on board the Iona said he was woken by a distress message at 5:45 this morning and saw the Iona beaming through the dark water as he stepped onto deck.

‘Everyone was very petrified and scared. Everyone was panicking,” Mr Johnson told MailOnline.

‘It was very dark, we had search beams hunting from all corners of the cruise ship. There were chilling noises and announcements as everyone tried to figure out what was going on.”

He added: ‘You never know what’s going to happen in the world, we all hope the outcome doesn’t become more tragic.’

Another passenger on board the Iona, who wished to remain anonymous, said she was woken by the cruise ship stopping. ‘The crew was called to their assembly points, which is how I discovered something was wrong.

‘Only later did the captain announce that we were assisting in a search and rescue operation with the German government. I went outside and saw the searchlights in the water. We were all sad and worried, hoping they would find people.”

The passenger added: ‘It’s a terrible thing to happen and our thoughts go out to those currently missing and their families. We eagerly await updates in the hope that more people will be found.”

“There is a very somber feeling on board, we are all waiting for updates and praying for good news.”

Two rescue cruisers, an emergency tugboat, a pilot boat, a police patrol boat and a helicopter are assisting in the search.

The search also involves a helicopter, as well as an emergency tugboat, a pilot boat and a police patrol boat.

Germany’s emergency command said it also flew a sensor plane over the sea to gain more information about Verity’s whereabouts.

A spokesperson for P&O Cruises told MailOnline: ‘P&O Cruises Iona is currently involved in a search and rescue operation off the coast of Germany.

“The incident is ongoing and Iona’s cooperation is in accordance with international maritime law and in accordance with the company’s moral and legal obligations.

‘Iona will be at sea today and this event should not affect tomorrow’s planned call to Rotterdam or the onward route.’

This is a breaking news story, more to come…