King of Spain attends funeral for victims of fishing shipwreck in Canada

The King of Spain, Felipe VI, attended a funeral on Friday in memory of the 21 sailors who died or are missing after the shipwreck of a Spanish fishing boat last month in Canadian waters.

The monarch and his wife, Queen Letizia, greeted and embraced the families of the victims at a religious ceremony that took place in the port of Marín, in the region of Galicia (northwest).

Hundreds of people, who did not fit in the church, watched the ceremony on a large screen placed outside.

The Archbishop of Santiago de Compostela, Julián Barrio, said, addressing the families, that “it is not easy to understand and accept” the loss of these 21 sailors.

The fishing boat “Villa de Pitanxo” was wrecked with 24 crew on board on 15 February in the icy Canadian waters.

Only three of his sailors - two Spaniards, including the patron saint, and one Ghanaian citizen - were rescued. Nine bodies were recovered from the sea and the other twelve crew members of the fishing boat based in the port of Marin are still missing.

After a 36-hour operation in very difficult weather conditions, the Canadian rescue services suspended searches, although the relatives of the twelve disappeared asked not to abandon them.

On board the ship were 16 Spaniards, five Peruvians and three Ghanaians.

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