Cargo ship skipper arrested following collision with pleasure boat near Leeuwarden, Netherlands

Police have arrested the captain of a cargo ship that had collided with a pleasure boat and caused it to sink near the city of Leeuwarden in the Netherlands on Monday, September 22.

The captain of the locally-registered inland cargo vessel Spes-Vera was detained after it was discovered that his ship struck and ran over a small yacht with two people on board while transiting the Prinses Margriet Canal south of Leeuwarden in the early afternoon (local time) of Monday.

Rescue divers from the local fire brigade were able to pull both of the yacht's occupants out of the water after an hour of searching.

The two individuals were later brought to hospital. However, local media has not yet provided updates on their condition.

The sunken yacht was later pulled to shore using an onshore crane, and the canal was re-opened to traffic at around 23:00.

The Royal Netherlands Sea Rescue Institution had also deployed boats to the area in response to the incident.