Police searching for sailor who went missing from cargo ship in Quebec

The Transportation Safety Board also sent a team of investigators to Trois-Rivieres, which is located about halfway between Montreal and Quebec City. (Photo By Government of Quebec(Vector graphics image by Krun) – SVG based on this file, Public Domain)

TROIS RIVIERES, Que. — Quebec provincial police searched the waters and shoreline near the port of Trois-Rivieres on Saturday looking for any sign of a sailor who disappeared from a docked cargo ship the night before.

Police received a call at about 10:30 p.m. Friday regarding a 23-year-old man who went missing from the Amazoneborg, a cargo ship that flies the Dutch flag.

Sgt. Daniel Thibodeau said the ship had recently arrived from outside Canada.

As of Saturday afternoon, there was no sign of the man despite an extensive search operation that at times involved provincial police, firefighters, local police and the Coast Guard.

Thibodeau said police hadn’t ruled out any possibilities, including that the man jumped or fell.

“All hypotheses are considered at this stage of the investigation, whether it’s an accident, a voluntary act or an ordinary disappearance,” he said.

Virginie Deschambeault, a spokeswoman for the port, said the man had been at work checking the ship’s draft when he disappeared and that he likely fell into the water.

The Transportation Safety Board also sent a team of investigators to Trois-Rivieres, which is located about halfway between Montreal and Quebec City.

Spokesman Alexandre Fournier said the investigators would interview the ship’s crew to evaluate how operations were run.

“Normally operations are tight, meaning they know what everyone is doing all the time,” he said. “(The disappearance) could indicate potential issues with the operation.”

The port’s website indicates that the Amazoneborg arrived in Trois-Rivieres on Thursday night.