Salvage crews raising the wreck of the sunken cruise vessel Bulgaria have succeeded in bringing it to the surface of the Volga River, operational headquarters spokesman Timur Khikmatov said on Friday, according to RIA Novosti.
“We see an antenna, a mast and the bridge,” he said.
The ship sank in the Volga River on June 10, killing at least 114 passengers and crew, with another 79 rescued and eight still missing.
The Bulgaria, which was lying at a depth of some 20 meters (over 65 feet), was lifted this morning from thick silt on the river bottom.
The operation to lift the ship has been postponed several times in the past few days due to difficulties in attaching lifting gear to the vessel`s hull and keeping it upright, and poor visibility.
The Russian Investigation Committee said on Friday there were a total of 201 on board the Bulgaria at the time of the accident and not 208 as previously thought.
