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Stricken ship sinks in rough seas Timber ship sinks in rough seas
(10 minutes later)
A stricken cargo ship has sunk in rough weather off the Devon coast, the Coastguard has said.A stricken cargo ship has sunk in rough weather off the Devon coast, the Coastguard has said.
The Greek-registered Ice Prince went down about 35 miles off the Start Point after shedding most of its load of 5,260 tonnes of timber. The Greek-registered Ice Prince went down about 26 miles off the Portland Bill after shedding most of its load of 5,260 tonnes of timber.
A coastguard spokesman said the ship had sunk at about 0045 GMT. A coastguard spokesman said the ship had sunk at about 0045 GMT after being monitored throughout the night by a French Coastguard tug and another tug.
Earlier coastguards had warned that the ship was likely to be lost if it listed much more, and the weather had been "critical for its stability". The 328ft vessel had sent out emergency calls after getting into difficulties.
Waves had reached 9ft and there were strong winds in the area.
Twelve of the crew had been airlifted to Portland by a coastguard helicopter and eight others were taken by the Torbay lifeboat to Brixham after it got into difficulties on Sunday night.
A coastguard spokeswoman said the vessel's stern was now on the bottom and the bow above the water.
Salvors are aboard both tugs, and coatsguards are warning other approaching shipping of hazards in the area.
There were reports that just before the sinking, further deck cargo was lost to the sea and the angle of the ship's listing had increased.
Visibility was said to be "very poor".