The volunteer group Bulsar, named after Nikifor Gerchev, says Bulgaria needs two specialised rescue ships, based in Burgas and Varna. The country has had no such ship since 2007, and there is no money for new ones.

The group wants Bulgaria to apply for EU funding. Experts say the ships are needed because accidents in the Black Sea are becoming more common. Bulsar helps coordinate searches and rescue operations for people in trouble at sea.

"There are ships. They are on the market. We just need… to look at our budget and buy them," retired captain Kamen Kukurov, chair of Bulsar's management board, told BNT.

Kukurov said Bulgaria has promised the International Maritime Organization to cover its own zone, which takes in nearly a third of the Black Sea. That is why, he said, the country cannot manage without two large rescue ships.

He said the new ships must handle rough seas well, have a long range and be as agile as the Perun. They must also be able to work far from the Bulgarian coast.

The Perun was Bulgaria's last specialised rescue ship. It was cut up for scrap six years ago.

It covered the whole Black Sea search and rescue area. It had a powerful firefighting system and helped sinking ships and searches for people.

"There were divers who could weld, if there was a hole, and the hole would be welded shut," retired captain Peycho Manolov, a former captain and one of the last to serve on the Perun, told BNT.

Manolov said rescue at sea is specialised work. To be safe, it needs trained crews and plans drawn up in advance. He gave the example of a passenger ship, which needs its own plan because many people have to be taken off. In a fire, crews use different equipment.