Cargo ship capsizes in East China Sea

A 98-metre, 6,532DWT cargo vessel capsized in the East China Sea just off Zhejiang Province in the early morning hours of September 25 (local time).

The cargo ship Hao Xiang 19 was carrying steel from Taizhou to Wenzhou when it encountered stormy weather and ran aground on a reef just off Luxi Island near Wenzhou.

The ship began to take on water due to the ensuing hull damage, leading to flooding which the crew was unable to control.

A distress call was sent out at approximately 03:15. Strong winds caused delays in the arrival of the Wenzhou Maritime Safety Administration’s rescue ships, the first of these reaching the scene of the incident over an hour later at 04:50.

All 13 crewmembers were evacuated without injury from Hao Xiang 19 by 05:28. The vessel capsized and sank just ten minutes later.