Search Team for Gulf Livestock 1 Missing Crew Sees Signs of Life on Uninhabited Tokara Island

It’s been 36 days when in an unfortunate & tragic incident, UAE-based Gulf Navigation owned Panamanian flagged 450 feet cargo marine vessel Gulf Livestock 1 sank with 5,867 cattle and 43 crew capsized near Amami Oshima Island in southwestern Japan after Category 4 storm Typhoon Maysak battered the region with winds up to 160 kilometers per hour. The prayers & hopes of family members of 40 crew from Australia, New Zealand and the Philippines have largely remained unanswered so far. But a latest report by Australian media house 9 News Senior Journalist Ms Kate Kachor on October 8 2020 said that a privately funded search team led by family and friends of missing Australian Mr William Mainprize has claimed to have found possible signs of life on uninhabited on Tokara Islands, a chain of 12 small islands off Japan's coast. Of the 12 islands, only seven are inhabited with an estimated population ranging from 40 to a total of 600 people across the entire archipelago.

A crowd funding page Save the Forty of Gulf Livestock 1 has so far raised more than AUD 116,000 to be put towards private searches of islands. The search group has spent AUD 50,000 of donated money on the fixed-wing flights and AUD 75,000 on the helicopter flyover. The expenses have dwindled to just AUD 4000.

In the hours and days following the sinking, Japan's Coast Guard rescued three survivors; one tragically died. 38 are yet to be found after the official search operation by Japanese Coast Guards was scaled back to regular patrols on September 10. For the families of the 36 missing Filipinos, the disaster has significant consequences back home. It remains unclear if the ship's owner, Gulf Navigation Holdings, plans to provide financial assistance to the families of the missing sailors. The Philippines' Overseas Worker Welfare Administration has given financial assistance to the two surviving Filipino crew amounting to 100,000 pesos, USD 2,914, each.

The Australian and New Zealand governments have both offered assistance to Japan in the search, however Japan was yet to accept the offer. In addition, CNN reported that on September 24, China, South Korea and Taiwan have agreed to the Philippines' request to assist with the search but with no success so far

The Gulf Livestock 1 started its trading career as a 630 teu containership in 2002 before being converted to carry animals 10 years later. The sunken ship had a chequered past.

The ship had left Napier Port in New Zealand on 14 August loaded with 5,867 cattle and 43 crew, 39 from the Philippines, 2 from Australia and 2 from New Zealand. It was headed to the port of Jingtan in Tangshan in China, with the journey expected to take 17 days. The ship was technically managed and crewed by Germany's Marconsult Schiffarht GMBH, while the commercial manager is Jordan-based Hijazi & Ghosheh Co.

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