SANSHA, July 26 (Xinhua) -- A Vietnamese vessel sank after encountering distress in waters near Yongshu Reef in the Nansha Islands in the South China Sea, with 37 people rescued as of 7:30 a.m. Sunday, authorities of China's Sansha City said.

All those rescued are Vietnamese nationals from the distressed vessel "Khoi Nguyen 18." A total of 62 people were on board.

At about 6:23 p.m. on Saturday, "Nanhai Jiu 115," a rescue ship operated by Nanhai Rescue Bureau of the Ministry of Transport, spotted what was believed to be a rocket parachute distress signal of the distressed ship on the sea. Six Chinese vessels, one rescue helicopter and one Vietnamese vessel are carrying out search and rescue operations at the scene.

According to the Sansha maritime search and rescue authorities, "Khoi Nguyen 18" is a Vietnamese-registered ship measuring 69.9 meters in length and 10.8 meters in beam, with a gross tonnage of 999.

Search and rescue operations are continuing.