Efforts To Search For Crew Members Of Hong Kong-flagged Cargoflagged Winds And Large Waves

Japan Coast Guard Vessel in the Senkaku Islands. (Wikimedia Commons/Al Jazeera English)

JAKARTA - A Hong Kong-flagged cargo ship with 22 crew members sank in the waters of the South China Sea nearfeeding Prefecture, southwest Japan, on Wednesday, January 25 this morning. Kyodo news agency reported that the coast guard's statement that the 13 crew members had been rescued and nine others were still being sought. Search efforts were hampered by strong winds and large waves. The Jintian ship weighing 6,551 tons made an emergency call at 23.15 local time from a location 110 km west of Danjo Island in the South China Sea. A storm warning was issued in conjunction with the emergency call. The 22 crew members consisted of 14 Chinese and 8 Myanmar citizens. They were sailing towards Incheon, South Korea, carrying wood and other goods. Five of the Chinese nationals were rescued by private boats sailing near them, and they were found well and able to communicate. The unfortunate ship had notified the coast guard who then sent a torch to the location before the ship sank. Eight other crew members were rescued by Japan's Air Self-Defense Forces and South Korean coast guard, who joined Japan's coast guard and Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Forces in a rescue effort. The ship sank outside Japanese territorial waters. The Jintian crew had previously reported the coast guard via satellite connection that their ship was “ filtered and water entered".