BEIJING: Five of the 12 missing crew members of a Chinese cargo ship were rescued today, a day after the vessel sank following a collision off the coast of south China's Guangdong Province, media report said.
Twelve crew members went missing after the ship carrying 5,000 tonnes of sand sank in the sea waters near the Pearl River estuary following a collision with another vessel, laden with 5,038 tonnes of steel, early yesterday.
Two crew members were rescued while 12 others were missing. Eleven sailors from the steel-laden ship were also rescued.
Thirty rescue ships, one helicopter and other ships were pressed in search and rescue operation.
"Five crew members have been rescued from the ship's cabin today," the Guangdong Maritime Safety Administration said.
The five told the rescue staff that there were seven others who were also trapped inside the ship's cabin and still alive, it said.
About 300 people, including more than 20 divers, were involved in the rescue operation, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
The two ships were registered in the eastern provinces of Jiangsu and Fujian.