A recording of a conversation between the captain of Volgoneft-212 and a dispatcher has been published

A recording of a conversation between the captain of the tanker Volgoneft-212, which crashed in the Kerch Strait, and a dispatcher is published by Izvestia on Sunday, December 15.

"The hull of the vessel was broken," the commander said during the talks.

He also noted that the crew is in life jackets, and the rear of the tanker is still kept on the water. There is no possibility to lower the water lines, the captain clarified. He appealed to the dispatcher for help.

"Gather the crew, let the entire crew be ready to leave the vessel," the dispatcher said, adding that the rescue vessel "Mercury" is on its way.

Breaking storm: two tankers in distress off the coast of Kerch

The powerful elements snapped both vessels in half

It became known earlier in the day that the tanker Volgoneft-212 was in distress due to bad weather in the Kerch Strait. In that area there were strong squally winds and sea waves up to 7 points. Some time later it became known about the damage of the second tanker. In the main Directorate (GU) of the Ministry of Emergency Situations in the Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol reported that in the elimination of the incident involved more than 50 people and 11 units of equipment.

Later it became known that the vessel "Volgoneft-212" ran aground, a few hours later the same happened with "Volgoneft-239" near the port of Taman, Krasnodar region. During the rescue operation 13 people were evacuated from the first vessel, one of them died. The crew of the second tanker, consisting of 14 people, is on the vessel, its evacuation is being prepared. Two criminal cases were opened over the incident, one of which was reclassified as more serious.

Assistant Minister of Health of Russia Alexei Kuznetsov said that the wreck of the tanker "Volgoneft-212" in the Kerch Strait injured 11 people, two of them in serious condition. The victims were recorded to have hypothermia.