8 remain missing after ship collision in South China

SANYA -- Eight people remain missing following a collision between their fishing boat and a Panamanian container ship off the southwestern coast of South China's Hainan province on Wednesday, resulting in the sinking of the fishing vessel, the provincial maritime search and rescue center said on Sunday.

Thanks to ongoing search and rescue efforts aided by advanced technologies such as underwater robots and remotely operated submersibles, the location of the sunken fishing boat was determined on Saturday. However, due to the rapid flow of water at the site and the presence of fishing nets around the sunken ship, divers have not been able to enter the cabin.

As of 5 pm Saturday, rescue boats, airplanes, and rescue personnel had been dispatched to search the missing people in an area exceeding 5,700 square nautical miles.

The fishing boat bearing the name "Yuenan Aoyu 36062" collided with the Panamanian container ship "SITC DANANG" at 22 nautical miles southwest of Yinggehai town in Ledong county around midnight Wednesday.