One member of a 12-man crew aboard the Chinese-registered Guo Xin 1 in Hong Kong waters has died of his injuries this morning (30 January). The 98m long vessel was located two to three knots southwest of the outlying island of Lamma at 8:45am when a blaze broke out on the vessel and emergency services were called to the scene.
 
Initial findings suggest that the fire began in the engine room of the vessel, which was carrying a 13-member crew. The ship was in transit with a cargo of street products from Lianyungang in Jiangsu province to Foshan in Guangdong. Twelve crew members were discovered unhurt.
 
Hong Kong authorities are investigating the cause of the fire.
 
The latest casualty follows the sinking of the Hong Kong-flagged, 2010-built Jin Tian in rough weather between South Korea and Japan on 25 January. The latest information regarding the sinking is that eight of crew of the 22 said to be onboard have been confirmed dead. Five crew members were rescued and are said to not be in a life-threatening condition.
 
Following the sinking a joint rescue operation was mounted by Japanese and South Korean coastguards.
 
The 9784 dwt cargo vessel was carrying timber when it issued a call for help at around 23:15pm on Tuesday 24 January. It sank approximately 3.5 hours later in the early hours of 25 January.
 
The Hong Kong Marine Department said it is in close contact with the ship manager (Shenzhen Shekou Shipping Transportation).
 
Source: The Hong Kong Maritime Hub

The opinions expressed herein are the author's and not necessarily those of The Xinde Marine News.