Two icebreakers have been sent to the Gulf of Sakhalin in Russia's Far East to free three ships stranded in ice, a regional marine search and rescue captain said on Saturday.
On Friday morning, the Sodruzhestvo, the refrigerator freighter Bereg Nadezhdy, and a scientific research ship, the Professor Kizevetter, requested help. There are some 400 crew members on board the vessels.
"On Friday evening, the Irbis arrived in the area and is presently nearing the stranded vessels. The ice is very thick," the captain said.
Two additional icebreakers have also been sent to the area. The Magadan will arrive from the North on Sunday and the Admiral Makarov will arrive from the South on Tuesday.
The captain said the crews of the vessels are in no danger.
YUZHNO-SAKHALINSK, January 1 (RIA Novosti)
