Two killed after fire breaks out on cargo ship in Yangtze River

Two cargo ship crewmembers were killed after a fire broke out on their vessel as it was transiting the Yangtze River in China’s Zhenjiang Province on the morning of Monday, April 1.

The blaze was said to have erupted in the crew living quarters on Sheng Tai as the ship was sailing from Nantong to Ulsan in South Korea.

The crew sent out a distress call, which was duly received by the Shanghai Maritime Rescue Center at around 06:52 local time.

A tug and three rescue boats were despatched to the scene of the incident to render assistance by evacuating the crew and aiding in firefighting efforts.

Fifteen of Sheng Tai’s 17 crew were successfully transferred to a waiting rescue boat while the remaining two reportedly lost consciousness, likely due to smoke inhalation, as the evacuation was taking place.

Firefighting efforts lasted until late afternoon. By then, the two crewmembers who had lost consciousness during the evacuation were confirmed dead.

An investigation is now underway to determine the cause of the fire.