According to the Sansha authorities in South China's Hainan Province, a Vietnamese vessel, the KHOI NGUYEN 18, sank after encountering distress in waters near Yongshu Reef in the Nansha Islands on July 25. As of now, 45 people have been rescued, with the latest rescued by the Chinese side at 1:42 pm on Sunday, Sansha authorities told the Global Times.

Photo: a screenshot of a footage of the rescue operation

China has dispatched six vessels and one rescue helicopter to assist in the operation, and seven Vietnamese ships are now also participating in the on-site search and rescue effort.

According to the Sansha maritime search and rescue authorities, the distressed vessel was the Vietnamese-flagged KHOI NGUYEN 18, measuring 69.9 meters in length and 10.8 meters in width, with 62 people on board.

As of 8:05 pm on Sunday, 41 of the rescued Vietnamese individuals onboard the distressed KHOI NGUYEN 18 have been safely transferred to Vietnamese ships, and the remaining four will be transferred tomorrow, Sansha maritime search and rescue authorities told the Global Times.