Hong Kong News

Nonpartisan, Noncommercial, unconstrained.
Friday, Mar 29, 2024

Sinking feeling over 27 lost in eye of storm

Sinking feeling over 27 lost in eye of storm

A rescue mission is still going on for 27 missing crewmen of an engineering vessel that broke in two and sank southwest of Hong Kong in Typhoon Chaba.
The Government Flying Service said yesterday mainland ship Fujing 001 broke up 300 kilometers from Hong Kong at 7.25 am on Saturday.

Two helicopters and a fixed-wing aircraft were deployed, but only three survivors were rescued, while 27 were still missing.

Pilots said a wind farm under construction near the scene made it difficult for aircraft to get close enough to stage the rescue.

The first helicopter did not manage to save any survivors as it spent too much time trying to find a way through the farm, while the second arrived 15 minutes later and only managed to save three in five minutes.

"According to experience, the chance of finding them alive is very slim," said controller Wu Wai-hung.

However, the search by three fixed-wing aircraft and six helicopters continued yesterday.

"It is the first operation in which we have mobilized all crew members, some of whom were on leave," Wu said.

Fujing 001 was involved in building the Qingzhou I and II offshore wind farms of Guangdong Electric Power Development Corp in Yangjiang, Guangdong.

The vessel belonged to Shanghai Huajing Zhiyun Maritime Technology Corp, and had undergone checks in Fuzhou, Fujian, in April.

The Guangdong Maritime Search and Rescue Center said the ship was sheltering from the storm in the waters of Yangjiang, but its anchor broke.

A spokesman for the vessel's owner said: "The shelter of Fujing 001 was close to the center of the typhoon. Weather conditions were adverse and the winds were strong. The waves hit 10 meters high at one stage, causing the anchor to break and control of the ship to be lost."

Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki said he had instructed Government Flying Service and other departments to expand the search.

"We will try our best to search for missing crew members and I wish them good luck," he said.

The Hong Kong Observatory lowered all storm signals at 7.40 pm yesterday.

Chaba was the first typhoon this year to see the typhoon eight signal to be hoisted, and it stayed up for 21 hours 10 minutes on Friday and Saturday.

It was the third-longest southeast typhoon eight signal and was only 50 minutes short of breaking the 22-hour record set by Lion Rock last year.

The Observatory admitted that computer predictions had caused an underestimation of Chaba's development from a tropical storm to typhoon and that it had also taken a more eastern route than predicted.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Hong Kong News
0:00
0:00
Close
It's always the people with the dirty hands pointing their fingers
Paper straws found to contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals - study
FTX's Bankman-Fried headed for jail after judge revokes bail
Blackrock gets half a trillion dollar deal to rebuild Ukraine
Steve Jobs' Son Launches Venture Capital Firm With $200 Million For Cancer Treatments
Google reshuffles Assistant unit, lays off some staffers, to 'supercharge' products with A.I.
End of Viagra? FDA approved a gel against erectile dysfunction
UK sanctions Russians judges over dual British national Kara-Murza's trial
US restricts visa-free travel for Hungarian passport holders because of security concerns
America's First New Nuclear Reactor in Nearly Seven Years Begins Operations
Southeast Asia moves closer to economic unity with new regional payments system
Political leader from South Africa, Julius Malema, led violent racist chants at a massive rally on Saturday
Today Hunter Biden’s best friend and business associate, Devon Archer, testified that Joe Biden met in Georgetown with Russian Moscow Mayor's Wife Yelena Baturina who later paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million in so called “consulting fees”
'I am not your servant': IndiGo crew member, passenger get into row over airline meal
Singapore Carries Out First Execution of a Woman in Two Decades Amid Capital Punishment Debate
Spanish Citizenship Granted to Iranian chess player who removed hijab
US Senate Republican Mitch McConnell freezes up, leaves press conference
Speaker McCarthy says the United States House of Representatives is getting ready to impeach Joe Biden.
San Francisco car crash
This camera man is a genius
3D ad in front of Burj Khalifa
Next level gaming
BMW driver…
Google testing journalism AI. We are doing it already 2 years, and without Google biased propoganda and manipulated censorship
Unlike illegal imigrants coming by boats - US Citizens Will Need Visa To Travel To Europe in 2024
Musk announces Twitter name and logo change to X.com
The politician and the journalist lost control and started fighting on live broadcast.
The future of sports
Unveiling the Black Hole: The Mysterious Fate of EU's Aid to Ukraine
Farewell to a Music Titan: Tony Bennett, Renowned Jazz and Pop Vocalist, Passes Away at 96
Alarming Behavior Among Florida's Sharks Raises Concerns Over Possible Cocaine Exposure
Transgender Exclusion in Miss Italy Stirs Controversy Amidst Changing Global Beauty Pageant Landscape
Joe Biden admitted, in his own words, that he delivered what he promised in exchange for the $10 million bribe he received from the Ukraine Oil Company.
TikTok Takes On Spotify And Apple, Launches Own Music Service
Global Trend: Using Anti-Fake News Laws as Censorship Tools - A Deep Dive into Tunisia's Scenario
Arresting Putin During South African Visit Would Equate to War Declaration, Asserts President Ramaphosa
Hacktivist Collective Anonymous Launches 'Project Disclosure' to Unearth Information on UFOs and ETIs
Typo sends millions of US military emails to Russian ally Mali
Server Arrested For Theft After Refusing To Pay A Table's $100 Restaurant Bill When They Dined & Dashed
The Changing Face of Europe: How Mass Migration is Reshaping the Political Landscape
China Urges EU to Clarify Strategic Partnership Amid Trade Tensions
The Last Pour: Anchor Brewing, America's Pioneer Craft Brewer, Closes After 127 Years
Democracy not: EU's Digital Commissioner Considers Shutting Down Social Media Platforms Amid Social Unrest
Sarah Silverman and Renowned Authors Lodge Copyright Infringement Case Against OpenAI and Meta
Why Do Tech Executives Support Kennedy Jr.?
The New York Times Announces Closure of its Sports Section in Favor of The Athletic
BBC Anchor Huw Edwards Hospitalized Amid Child Sex Abuse Allegations, Family Confirms
Florida Attorney General requests Meta CEO's testimony on company's platforms' alleged facilitation of illicit activities
The Distorted Mirror of actual approval ratings: Examining the True Threat to Democracy Beyond the Persona of Putin
40,000 child slaves in Congo are forced to work in cobalt mines so we can drive electric cars.
×