2 sailors of missing Korean cargo ship rescued; 22 unaccounted for

A life raft believed to be from a South Korean ship that sank in the South Atlantic last week has been found with efforts now under way to safely rescue two sailors on the raft, the Seoul government said Sunday.

The search for the missing South Korean ship, Stella Daisy, began Saturday, one day after the ship's crew members sent a text to their South Korean employer, saying their ship was sinking.

The Marshall Islands-flagged ship was sailing near Uruguay when it made the distress call, according to the foreign ministry. The life raft was found drifting by commercial ships in the area. An earlier report said two life boats had been spotted.

The ministry later corrected only one small raft has been found, carrying two people. The nationalities of its two occupants have not been confirmed.

The 266,000-ton Stella Daisy was carrying eight South Korea and 16 Filipino sailors. The fate of the South Korean ore carrier also remains unconfirmed. (Yonhap)