Search for six missing crew after barges collide in fog
Force of collision throws 11 people into water near Stanley; rescuers pluck five to safety
Rescue teams in Hong Kong stepped up the search for six crew members missing at sea on Friday after two boats collided in fog, as officials investigated the cause of the latest incident to hit the city’s busy waterways.
Additional police divers and five more rescue boats were dispatched to waters off Bluff Head (Wong Ma Kok) after two mainland barges collided last night in thick fog near Stanley. The rescue boats will assist the four vessels already at the scene. A search helicopter could not be deployed because of continuing poor visibility.
“The rescuers have searched for them overnight but we are still looking for the six missing,” a spokeswoman from the marine department told AFP.
"The direction of the probe is to investigate the cause of the incident, especially to see whether anyone took measures to prevent the collision at sea."
It was the second major collision at sea in less than two weeks and follows the October 1 ferry crash off Lamma Island, which claimed 39 lives.
We are still searching for the six. We don't know whether they are dead or alive
The 96- and 97-metre barges were carrying construction waste and sand when they collided south of Bluff Head near Beaufort Island (Lo Chau) at about 7.50pm. The impact threw 11 crew members into the sea from one barge, which sank soon after. The other remained afloat and no one on that vessel was hurt.