Emergency crews have recovered eight bodies of sailors who went
overboard when their ship sank off east China after its collision
with another ship late Saturday night.
Twelve sailors have been rescued and the other nine are still
missing, sources with the maritime safety administration of Zhejiang Province revealed on Sunday.
The collision occurred around 11 PM Saturday near the Langgang
islands, northeast of Zhoushan Island, Zhejiang Province, when a
cargo ship belonging to a transport company in Shenzhen crashed
with another transport vessel from Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong ship, Huirong, sank immediately and all
its 29 sailors on board were marooned at sea. The crew of the
second ship, Pengyan, belonging to Shenzhen Ocean Shipping
Co., Ltd., escaped unharmed.
The Zhejiang maritime safety administration immediately
activated an emergency plan to rescue the sailors after it received
a report of the accident, said an official with the
administration.
More than 40 vessels and three helicopters from the East China
Sea Fleet, East China Sea Rescue Bureau, and local maritime safety
authorities in Zhejiang have joined the rescue efforts.
Minister of Communications Li Shenglin and Vice Minister Weng
Mengyong arrived at the China Maritime Search and Rescue Center to
direct the rescue operation.
Rescuers are still searching for the missing, and the cause of
the collision is under investigation.
Meanwhile, workers have begun to clear oil leaking into the sea
and set location markers for the Hong Kong ship.
(Xinhua News Agency March 19, 2007)