Hopes of finding survivors aboard Bulgarian cargo ship Vanessa, which sank in the Azov Sea early on Thursday, are fading after two dead bodies were identified and only one of the 11 crewmembers saved.

The body of senior assistant Petko Momchev was identified Friday by mechanic Nikolay Dimitrov, who was rescued on Thursday after spending 11 hours in the ice-cold waters.

Chief mechanic Georgi Zhelev is the other seaman reported dead.

Since the start of the rescue operation, media have been receiving contradictory reports about the number of victims in the shipwreck. Russian rescuers said seven sailors are already dead, while Bulgarian maritime administration officials spoke to reporters of three dead bodies.

The owner of the ship, Board Marine Burgas Company, also announced that right before the ship sailed off, mechanic Adrian Hristov replaced his brother Ivan, who was initially reported to be one of the crewmembers.

The ten Bulgarian members of Vanessa crew were named as (in the picture from left to right clockwise): captain Miroslav Velikov Dimitrov, senior assistant Petko Savov Momchev, assistant Georgi Petrov Dimitrov, chief mechanic Georgi Stoyanov Zhelev, mechanic Nikolay Dimitrov Dimitrov, seaman Dimo Evtimov Dimov, boatswain Goran Doynov Todorov, coxswain Dimitar Hristov Chepishev, coxswain Toncho Dimitrov Bakalov, and mechanic Adrian Danchev Hristov.

The air search for survivors, carried out by helicopters as well as Russian and Ukrainian ships, has been repeatedly called on and off throughout the days of the operation, due to poor weather conditions.

Air temperature in the region is -17 C and wind speed is 30 meters per second. A snowstorm also started, rescuers said.

Vanessa shipwrecked near the Kerch Strait just 22 nautical miles from the Gulf of Kerch. The area is very tricky during the winter season, with several Russian ships sinking there last month during a storm.

Bulgarian authorities have insisted they should take part in the rescue efforts and representatives are expected to arrive on location late on Friday.

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