The search is continuing for 18 missing people the day after eight people died when a ferry capsized off the coast of Northern Cyprus.
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ferry → continue → Cyprus
Early on Monday, the captain and eight others were brought before a judge and placed under formal arrest as three days of national mourning began, according to the official state news agency of the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).
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days → bring → Cyprus
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crew → probe → capsizing
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boat → miss → Cyprus
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The ferry ran into trouble about midday (09:00 GMT) on Sunday, shortly after leaving the northern port of Girne – also known as Kyrenia – heading for the Turkish port of Tasucu in Mersin province.
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ferry → recover → province
A major rescue operation began for the 267 passengers and crew on board, according to local authorities.
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operation → begin → authorities
They said 241 were rescued, eight died and 18 were listed as missing.
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18 → say → ?
Their nationalities have not been published.
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nationalities → publish → ?
It was not clear if people remained trapped on the vessel, which is lying on the seabed at a depth of more than 500 metres (1,640 ft).
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which → remain → metres
Passengers said the boat had begun taking on water before it capsized.
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it → say → water
Some survivors said they heard an explosion at the front of the boat, others said there was not enough safety equipment.
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others → say → boat
Video from the scene broadcast by Turkish television showed the capsized ferry with passengers wearing life jackets sitting on top of its orange hull.
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passengers → broadcast → hull
“Some people had to jump without lifebuoys or life jackets,” one young man, Efe Multici, told CNN Turk.
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man → have → Turk
Serkan Kunduraci, who escaped the sinking ferry by hauling himself through a broken window, said he saw children and others drowning in the sea 7.5km (4 nautical miles) off the Cypriot coast.
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children → escape → coast
“I saw some who didn’t know how to swim die in the sea,” he told the DHA news agency.
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he → see → agency
“We saw and witnessed a family’s children, boys and girls, very young children, drowning.”
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children → see → ?
Rescuer Muhammed Ozcelik, who runs a water sports company, said his boat was one of the first on the scene and began hauling survivors from the sea.
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boat → run → sea
“We tried to do more than we could.
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we → try → more
People were saying, ‘Take me too, take me too,’ but the capacity was full,” the Associated Press agency reported.
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agency → say → me
Recovering the vessel’s “black box” data recorder would help understand what caused the incident, authorities said.
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authorities → recover → incident
Divers from Turkiye were assisting the search, officials said.
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officials → assist → search
Cyprus was split in 1974 and Turkish Cypriots declared independence from Greek control in 1983.
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Cypriots → split → 1983
Only Turkiye recognises the north, where more than 35,000 troops are stationed.
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troops → recognise → north