Chances of survival for 27 missing crew members of typhoon-hit vessel ‘very slim’, Hong Kong rescue authorities admit on day 2 of search
- The workers are among a 30-strong crew on an engineering vessel that was on Saturday battered by fierce waves as Typhoon Chaba raged
- Government Flying Service rescued three from the mainland wreck, but hopes of finding the others fading by the day
Typhoon Chaba, which triggered the first No 8 warning signal of the year, packed winds of up to 144km/h, with fierce waves on Saturday pummelling mainland Chinese vessel “Fujing001”.
Three crew members were pulled to safety by the city’s rescue teams, but 27 are still missing.
The Government Flying Service had dispatched four fixed-wing aircraft, six helicopters and 36 rescuers for the operation as of Sunday, with the search perimeter spanning 1,300km, after the vessel fell apart southwest of Hong Kong.
“Noting the time since the 27 people went missing and from previous experience … The chances of finding them alive are very, very slim,” said West Wu Wai-hung, a controller from the flying service.
“Our hearts are with the families of the missing sailors and workers, and I do wish we find some survivors. It will be a miracle to do that.”
Wu vowed the flying service would continue to do its best to locate the missing seamen, but bad weather had been hindering efforts.