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‘Come home soon’: Wife’s emotional plea for Qld man Lukas Orda missing in rough seas near Japan

Ellen RansleyNCA NewsWire
Camera IconCredit: Supplied

The wife of a Queensland vet missing after a rough typhoon forced a cattle ship to send out a distress signal has made an emotional plea.

Lukas Orda was one of 43 crew members on-board the ill-fated Gulf Livestock 1, which was bound for China after leaving New Zealand last month. The vessel has gone missing after a monstrous typhoon hit waters southwest of Japan.

Japanese officials believe the vessel, which was carrying 5800 cattle, may have sunk, with search efforts under way.

The cargo ship sent a distress signal during Typhoon Maysak in the waters west of Amami Oshima Island.

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It’s understood it capsized after it hit rough weather and a freak wave.

The wife of missing vet Lukas Orda has made an emotional plea on Facebook for her husband to ‘come home soon’.
Camera IconThe wife of missing vet Lukas Orda has made an emotional plea on Facebook for her husband to ‘come home soon’. Credit: Facebook

Mr Orda’s wife Emma on Thursday night made an emotional post on social media.

“Please come home really soon we love you,” the post read on a picture of the two of them.

The couple wed in November 2019 and welcomed a son in March.

Mr Orda studied at James Cook University in Townsville before working at the Gold Coast Equine Clinic. He joined the cattle export ship as a veterinary officer in June.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade are in contact with both Mr Orda’s family and that of the other Australian crew member.

“The Australian Government is providing consular assistance to the families of two Australian crew members on-board a cargo vessel reported missing in Japanese waters,” DFAT said in a statement.

The vet’s heartbreaking last Facebook post was on June 24, revealing his excitement at the journey ahead.

“And the first 20-day stretch of my trip starts.....” Mr Orda wrote.

It was accompanied by a map showing he was travelling to Yantai, China from Port of Portland in Victoria.

One crew member has so far been rescued by the Japanese Coast Guard. He told rescuers the ship had suffered engine failure during the typhoon before it capsized after being hit by a wave.

Originally published as ‘Come home soon’: Vet lost on missing ship

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