Senegal navy patrol boat capsizes, three sailors missing

The Senegalese navy has launched a large-scale search operation to locate three sailors who went missing after their patrol boat capsized in poor weather conditions.

On Thursday evening, the army said it had rescued “10 survivors” and recovered the remains of the vessel.

According to a statement from the armed forces’ public relations office, “the patrol boat capsized at the mouth of the Senegal River (north) this morning at around 9 a.m. Three sailors are missing.”

The vessel “was carrying out a liaison mission and is believed to have encountered strong waves following a deterioration in weather conditions,” the statement added.

The military has deployed “air, sea and land resources” to help find the missing sailors.

The Senegal River, which stretches 1,640 kilometres, forms the natural border between Senegal and Mauritania and flows into the Atlantic Ocean near the city of Saint-Louis.