Daring T8 helicopter rescue saves sinking ship's crew near Hong Kong
A daring nighttime helicopter rescue saved the crew of a sinking cargo vessel from 10-metre waves near Hong Kong as the typhoon signal No 8 was in force yesterday.
A daring nighttime helicopter rescue saved the crew of a sinking cargo ship from 10-metre waves near Hong Kong as the typhoon signal No 8 was in force in the early hours of Tuesday.
The rescue operation was mounted at about 1am as the 96-metre-long cargo ship, the Hao Jun, lost power in Chinese waters about 20km southwest of Macau.
The ship’s master ordered the 13 other crew members to abandon ship as it was taking on water and in danger of sinking, according to the Government Flying Service.
The Observatory raised the No 8 signal at 10.30pm as Typhoon Kalmaegi barrelled towards Guangdong and Hainan island, bringing with it gusts of up to 166km/h.
A Super Puma helicopter was dispatched to rescue the crew after Guangdong maritime rescue authorities sought help from their Hong Kong counterparts.
The Government Flying Service said the mainland-registered ship was battered by “10-metre waves”, while gusts of over 100 km/h also made plucking the sailors from the ship and winching them to safety even more difficult.
“The winching conditions were extremely challenging with the rough sea causing the vessel to move violently,” the service said.
It took rescuers about an hour to collect the 14 crew members who were then airlifted to Hong Kong. One crew member required hospital treatment.
And just before 5am, another helicopter was deployed to rescue an 11-man crew on board a barge that had run aground in the same area. But as seas calmed the crew were able to be rescued by boat.
The Observatory lowered the T8 warning signal at 10.40am on Tuesday and replaced it with the T3 signal.
Before that schools had been closed, trading was suspended and dozens of flights in and out of Hong Kong had been cancelled as the storm approached.
According to the Hospital Authority, 18 men and 11 women had sought hospital treatment between 10.30pm on Monday and 11am today.
The government said it had received 128 reports of fallen trees, while the Drainage Service Department received five reports of flooding and there was one reported landslide.
Between 6am and 11am today, nine arrival flights and 13 departures were cancelled while 26 arrivals and 18 departures were delayed, according to the Airport Authority.
While the No 8 signal was in force, a total of 176 people sought refuge at temporary government shelters opened by the Home Affairs Department.
The typhoon is now nearing Leizhou Peninsula in Guangdong.
