Cable-layer catches fire, sinks in East China Sea

South Korean media reports that a cable-laying vessel caught fire and sank in the East China Sea on Friday, September 11.

The South Korean-flagged Responder was in the process of laying a stretch of cable off the coast of Tongyeong when a blaze ignited in its engine room at around 03:40 local time on Friday.

The fire quickly spread to the vessel’s accommodation area, forcing all 60 crew to abandon ship. All were later rescued by a tug that had sailed to the area to render assistance.

Vessels from the Korea Coast Guard and other agencies were still conducting firefighting operations on the stricken cable-layer when it sank bow-first approximately 31 nautical miles off Tongyeong at 17:40 on Saturday, September 12.

No injuries have been reported among the crew and no oil spills have been detected.