Spain uses research ship to scan the seabed in search of missing people

NOS News•yesterday, 9:07 PM

In Spain, a research vessel is searching for victims of last week’s floods. The ship is normally used for research into living organisms underwater. A team of scientists is trying to map an area the size of 5,000 football fields using sensors and an underwater robot.

The aim is to locate cars swept away by the floods into the Mediterranean Sea. The hope is that this will result in the bodies of missing people being found. The ship’s more than twenty crew members believe they can provide useful information to the police and emergency services within ten days.

The biologists use an underwater robot that can reach a depth of 60 meters to identify vehicles, although it is questionable whether license plates can be seen. “Visibility may be severely limited,” the mission leader said. According to him, cars may also lie in pieces on the seabed or have sunk in the mud.

The devastating floods in Spain have killed at least 223 people. By far the most victims are in the Valencia region. Nearly a hundred people have been officially reported missing, but authorities fear the actual number is significantly higher.