Cheap fuel 'crippled' storm ship
CHEAP Chinese diesel may have caused the breakdown of two engines on a mainland cargo vessel which had to be rescued by marine police in rough seas near Hong Kong yesterday.
A marine police launch lost a $150,000 inflatable life raft during the difficult operation early yesterday, battling waves seven metres high.
Nine mainland mariners and the 500-tonne vessel were towed to Mirs Bay after drifting dangerously close to rocks near Qingzhou island, 20 kilometres east of Hong Kong's eastern boundary.
Police had to make two attempts to attach a line to the sugar-carrying Hang Shung 1, and motioned to the worried crew to return to the cabin after they seemed prepared to abandon ship.
'These were the roughest seas I have ever encountered in the five years I have been in this job,' said launch commander Senior Inspector Stanley Yu Sai-kit.
Inspector Yu said they would investigate why one of two life rafts was lost overboard during the rescue operation.
'We had to decide whether to try to retrieve the raft or rescue the men,' said Inspector Yu.
The mainland crew claimed cheap diesel bought in China caused the power failure in the engines and generator.
