One man died and two others taken to hospital after British-flagged Verity collided with a larger cargo ship, Polesie, about 14 miles (22.5km) south-west of the German island of Heligoland around 5am on Tuesday.
Seven people were reportedly on board Verity when it sank. Germany’s Central Command for Maritime Emergencies on Friday called off the search for four remaining men, who are deemed “unaccounted for”.
While the larger, Bahamas-flagged Polesie stayed afloat, the Verity, which had departed from Bremen and was destined for the port of Immingham on the east coast of England carrying steel coils, became submerged. Shortly afterwards a signal from the ship was lost, German authorities said, and wreckage was found.
Michael Ippich, of the German Maritime Search and Rescue Service, said the water temperature at the time of collision was 12C (54F), in which people can survive for about 20 hours.
The Isle of Man Ship Registry said: “The Ship Registry’s thoughts are with the seafarers that sailed on board the Verity, their families, friends and loved ones.
“The Ship Registry wish to thank all of those who have been involved in the search and rescue efforts over the past days.
“The team will continue to work with the relevant authorities in the ongoing investigations being conducted by the UK’s Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB).”
Polesie, which was reportedly travelling from Hamburg to La Coruña in Spain when the crash happened, remained afloat with 22 people on board.
At around 190m, the ship is more than twice the length of Verity, which measured 91m.
