Rescuers scour South China Sea for 23 missing after Vietnamese vessel sinks

Rescuers were searching on Sunday for 23 people missing after a Vietnamese ship ​sank in the busy waterway of the ‌South China Sea, while 39 were pulled from the waters, China's state broadcaster CCTV said.

Authorities in the southern province ​of Hainan said the cargo vessel Khoi ​Nguyen 18, with 62 Vietnamese nationals aboard, ran ⁠into distress in waters near Fiery Cross Reef, ​CCTV added.

A distress flare from the vessel was ​first spotted by a Chinese rescue ship, the Nanhai Jiu 115, on Saturday evening, CCTV said.

Six Chinese vessels, a rescue ​helicopter, and a Vietnamese vessel joined the search ​and rescue effort at the site, it said.

The Vietnamese-registered vessel ‌is ⁠nearly 70 m (230 ft) long with a gross tonnage of 999 tons.

The area around the reef is part of the disputed Spratly Islands, which China ​calls the ​Nansha Islands, ⁠a group of highly contested reefs, islets, and atolls in the resource-rich South ​China Sea.

China claims sovereignty over almost the ​entire ⁠strategic waterway, including the Spratlys, where it has built runways and militarised artificial islands.

But Beijing's sweeping claims ⁠overlap ​with those of Vietnam, the ​Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Brunei.

- Reuters