Death toll rises to 434 as river search widens

The death toll from the Chinese cruise ship Eastern Star, which capsized on the Yangtze River on June 1, rose to 434 on Monday afternoon. Eight people are still missing.

Minister of Transport Yang Chuantang asked rescuers to spare no efforts in searching for the missing. During a meeting on Sunday at the rescue headquarters in Jianli, Hubei province, he urged them "to show respect to the victims and condolences to their families".

The scope of the search was enlarged from around the site of the ship's hull to the entire stretch of the lower Yangtze River, as far as the Wusong harbor in Shanghai.