Eleven crew members have been evacuated from a sinking cargo ship, identified as Hong-Tai 176, while underway in the waters of Hong Kong as tropical cyclone Pakhar battered the area.
The vessel sent a distress call while en route some 64 nautical miles east of Hong Kong on Sunday morning, with 11 crew members on board, Xinhua reports citing the Government Flying Service (GFS) of China’s Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). Once informed of the incident, GFS sent a helicopter to the scene to rescue the distressed crew.
When the aircraft arrived at the scene, the ship’s bow was reportedly already submerged into the water.
As informed, 10 airlifted crew members were in stable condition, while one sailor sustained minor injuries.
The rescue operation was hampered by strong wind, water swells, and poor visibility. The Chinese-flagged vessel sank shortly thereafter.
Based on the latest update from the government, the cyclone Pakhar is moving away from Hong Kong.
On August 27, the Hong Kong Pilots Association Ltd said the pilotage service would partially resume from 10pm on Sunday and will fully resume operations when weather improve
http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=414471
