12 bodies found after floating crane sank in China

Beijing: A total of 12 bodies, believed to be of the people who went missing after a floating crane sank off the coast of China's Guangdong Province, were found on Monday, the provincial maritime search and rescue centre said.

The floating crane of an offshore wind-farm project was found via a monitoring system to be in danger after its mooring chain broke while it was taking shelter from typhoon Chaba in waters near the city of Yangjiang on Saturday.

The crane later sank with 27 people going missing. One person was rescued.

The 12 bodies were recovered in an area about 50 nautical miles southwest of the site where the floating crane sank, and relevant departments are stepping up the identification work, said the centre.

A total of seven planes, 246 vessels and 498 fishing boats have been mobilised to carry out searches for the remaining missing people in targeting areas including beaches and nearshore and offshore area, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Chaba, the third typhoon of the year, made landfall in the coastal area of Maoming City in Guangdong on Saturday.

China's State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters on Saturday upgraded its emergency response for flood and typhoon control to Level III, in light of possible floods triggered by the third and fourth typhoons of the year.

Typhoon Aere, the fourth typhoon of the year, is forecast to approach the East China Sea on the weekend.

China has a four-tier flood-control emergency response system, with level I being the most severe. PTI KJV MRJ MRJ