At Least 12 Dead and Over a Dozen Missing After Typhoon Sinks Ship in Hong Kong

Amethyst Tate
·2 min read
In this image released by Hong Kong Government Flying Service, a helicopter with rescue crew members approaches a sinking ship in the South China Sea, 300 kilometers (186 miles) south of Hong Kong on July 2, 2022, as Typhoon Chaba was moving in the area. A fourth crew member has been rescued Monday, July 4, 2022 after the typhoon sunk the engineering vessel earlier this week, according to a Chinese state broadcaster.

Hong Kong Government Flying Service via AP The Chinese engineering ship that sunk

A typhoon sank a ship off the coast of Hong Kong on Saturday, tragically killing dozens of crew members, according to reports.

At least 12 people are confirmed dead and four have been rescued, while over a dozen other remain missing after the Fujing001 ship broke in half about 185 miles southwest of Hong Kong, per CNN.

On Sunday, Hong Kong Government Flying Services Controller West Wu Wai-hung said during a press conference that the chances of finding more survivors were "very, very slim."

"We would like to give our hearts to those families of the missing sailors and workers, and I do wish that we could find some survivors, it will be a miracle to do that," he said before suspending search operations overnight on Saturday due to poor weather conditions.

However, just a few hours later, the fourth crew member, described as a deck worker in "normal physical condition," was rescued from the waters, CNN reported.

The Chinese engineering ship, which was carrying 30 people and helping build offshore wind farms, was sheltering from tropical storm Chaba on Saturday when the incident happened, according to the Associated Press.

In this image released by Hong Kong Government Flying Service, helicopter crew members winch up a man from a sinking ship in the South China Sea, 300 kilometers (186 miles) south of Hong Kong, Saturday, July 2, 2022, as Typhoon Chaba was moving in the area. The industrial support ship operating in the South China Sea has sunk with the possible loss of more than two dozen crew members, rescue services in Hong Kong said Saturday.

Hong Kong Government Flying Service via AP A crew member being rescued from the ship

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Maritime officials told the outlet that winds were blowing at up to 68 miles per hour, causing the ship to drag its anchor and break the anchor chain. The ship then snapped in half and sank.

According to the AP, the ship was in close proximity to the center of the storm, which later upgraded to a typhoon as it made landfall in Guangdong.

Because of the vessel's position to the storm, rescue operations became incredibly difficult. Hong Kong sent two fixed-wing aircraft and four helicopters to help with rescue efforts, before they were able to rescue three crew members.

The trio are now said to be in stable condition as they receive treatment at North Lantau Hospital, according to CNN.

Twelve bodies have also been recovered but they have not yet been identified, Chinese maritime authorities confirmed, per the AP.

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As of Sunday, Hong Kong's flying service said they used three fixed-wing aircraft, six helicopters and 36 rescuers for the search operation, which spanned a total of 807 miles, according to CNN.

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The Guangdong Maritime Search and Rescue Center also said it used seven rescue vessels, multiple salvage, merchant and coast guard ships and was coordinating with China Southern Airlines to send rescue helicopters, per the outlet.

At this time, the search for survivors remains ongoing.