The Latest on China Boat Sinking: More divers at rescue site
Jun 2, 2015, 9:36 PM
A man watches rescuers work on the hull of a capsized cruise ship on the Yangtze River in Jianli in central China's Hubei province Tuesday June 2, 2015. Divers on Tuesday pulled survivors from inside the overturned cruise ship, state media said, giving some small hope to an apparently massive tragedy with well over 400 people still missing on the river. (Chinatopix Via AP) CHINA OUT
(Chinatopix Via AP)
12:15 p.m. (0415 GMT)
More divers are being sent to join the rescue.
Thirteen divers were working at the disaster site Tuesday, and an additional 120 were supposed to have arrived overnight from the provincial capital of Wuhan.
According to the Hubei provincial military region commander, Chen Shoumin, 50 more divers from Guangzhou are due to arrive Wednesday.
The overturned ship has drifted about 3 kilometers (almost 2 miles) downstream on the Yangtze River before coming to rest close to shore, where fast currents and strong winds are making the rescue difficult.
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11 a.m. (0300 GMT)
AccuWeather agency says showers, thunderstorms and potentially strong winds will continue in the region over the next 24-36 hours, making rescue efforts more challenging.
The rescue is ongoing in about 15 meter (50 feet) deep water of the Yangtze River, where the Eastern Star cruise ship overturned Monday night with 456 people aboard. Thirteen bodies have been pulled so far and 14 people rescued.
AccuWeather meteorologist Anthony Sagliani says a stalled front at the time of the sinking was causing numerous thunderstorms with gusty winds.
China’s state media reported a cyclone with winds of up to 130 kilometers (80 miles) per hour was lashing the river at the time.
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9:30 a.m. (0130 GMT)
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV revises the number people on board the cruise ship to 456 when it capsized on Monday night. Originally state media said 458 people — 406 passengers, five travel agency employees and a crew of 47 — were on board.
But CCTV cut that figure by one passenger and one crewmember. No reason was given for the change.
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8:30 a.m. (0030 GMT)
Amid continuing uncertainty about the fate of the more than 400 missing on the cruise ship that capsized in China’s Yangtze River, state broadcaster CCTV announced Wednesday morning that it was suspending live broadcasts from the disaster site for technical reasons.
It did not elaborate. International media workers have also been kept away from the immediate area surrounding where workers are searching for bodies.
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