Twelve fishermen have been saved after two fishing boats
collided Tuesday morning in Qiongzhou Straits off south China's
Hainan Province, rescuers confirmed Wednesday.
The boat, coded "Zhanjiang 00131", was hit by another local
fishing boat at around 10:30?AM Tuesday and was seriously
damaged. The fishermen phoned their families to seek rescue as they
kept scooping out seawater that kept pouring into the cabin.
Two rescue boats and a helicopter were sent to the site by
midday, after the Nanhai Salvage Bureau of the Ministry of
Communications was informed of the accident.
Six of the fishermen were saved at 1:35 PM Tuesday and the other
six got rescued at 2:42 PM, said sources with the salvage
bureau.
(Xinhua News Agency February 22, 2006)
