Two sailors missing after Taiwanese boat sank near Diaoyu Islands

www.chinaview.cn 2009-04-17 19:19:50 Print

TAIPEI, April 17 (Xinhua) -- Two people are missing after a Taiwanese fishing boat sank early Friday morning after a seemingly collision with a cargo ship off the seas of the Diaoyu Islands, local media reported.

There were 13 people on board the boat when the accident occurred at around 12:30 a.m. about 20 nautical miles(about 37 km) northwest of the Diaoyu Islands, according to the reports.

Two nearby fishing boats went to the site of the accident and rescued 11 crewmen, but the captain and the chief engineer are still missing.

It was supposed that the fishing boat, Hsin Tung Chung No. 82, was sunk by a cargo vessel from Panama or Norway.

Coast guard authorities from Taiwan and Japan are searching for the two crewmen.

China claims sovereignty over the Diaoyu Islands and adjacent islets, saying they have been Chinese territories since ancient times. The uninhabited islets in the East China Sea are also claimed by Japan.