Developing | 32 missing after Iranian oil tanker collides with Chinese freighter in East China Sea
Search and rescue mission launched to find the tanker’s 30 Iranian and two Bangladeshi crew members
Thirty-two crew members on an Iranian oil tanker were reported missing after it collided with a Chinese freighter off China’s east coast on Saturday night, state media reported on Sunday.
The collision, between the Panama-registered tanker Sanchi and the Hong Kong-registered bulk freighter CF Crystal, occurred at about 8pm on Saturday in the East China Sea, roughly 160 nautical miles east of the Yangtze River Delta, Xinhua reported, citing a statement from China’s Ministry of Transport.
Thirty Iranians and two Bangladeshis were missing from the oil tanker, the report said. The 21 members of the freighter’s crew – all Chinese nationals – were rescued.
“Sanchi is floating and burning as of [9am]. There is an oil slick and we are pushing forward with rescue efforts,” the ministry said, without detailing the size of the slick.
