Death toll climbs to 82 as China rights capsized ship

Shanghai – Rescuers battle bad weather on Tuesday, they searched for 400 people or more, out of which many of them elderly Chinese tourists, missed the boat, in what is likely the worst shipping disaster of the Yangtze River in China have foundered for nearly 70 years.

Divers and other rescue workers tried to reach five, they found trapped in the upturned hull of Eastern Star, a small part of the official media reported 458 people on board when the ship capsized in a storm on Monday night.

State television footage showed rescue workers trying to cut ship’s hull the with the angle grinder. People’s Daily reported that the passengers still inside Eastern Star, and the official Xinhua News Agency said rescuers could hear someone yelling for help, from the inside.

Divers pulled a man and a 65-year-old woman alive from the deck of a cruise ship capsized four, Xinhua News Agency said. Earlier State media said that the woman was 85 years old.

About a few dozen people have been rescued, five corpses, some media reports, killed more than 430 people missing. Dozen of boats fought with wind and rain to reach the ship, which lay about 15 meters (50 feet) deep in water upturned.

The disaster could bring greater toll than Korea ferry sank in April 2014, resulting in 304 people, out of them most of the children’s are in a school trip.

People’s Daily, which published the list of passengers on the micro-blog, said on board the age is ranged in between 3 to more than 80 as per eastern star.

had ordered not spared any effort in the rescue and Premier Li Keqiang went to the accident site in central Hubei province, Xinhua News Agency said that more than 50 angry families are standing out of travel agency already booked to travel a lot of persons on board and asked for their missing loved ones gather travel information outside in shanghai.

“I just found this on the news, while I was at work, I came here, said:” on board the 35-year-old Wang Sheng, who said his mother and father.

“I cried all the way here, the door is locked and I could not find anyone here” Wang said.

POLICE DETAINED CAPTAIN

The ship’s captain and chief engineer, who is among the few to be rescued, has been in police custody for questioning, Xinhua News Agency said.

According to the Yangtze River Navigation management, which has said the ship sank was soon caught in what was described as a sudden tornado.

Xinhua News Agency reported that a preliminary investigation found that the ship is not overloaded, it has enough life jackets on board also carry passengers number. Rescued were wearing life jackets, Xinhua News Agency said.

In these 406 tourists on board, aged about 50-80,on a tour organized by the Shanghai tour group, as well as 47 crew members and 5 tour guide, the People’s Daily said.

National Radio reported that the in about two minutes ship went over, and no distress call had been issued. Seven people swam to shore, raise the alarm, the media said.

Dozens of fishing boats is to assist in search and rescue, Xinhua News Agency said more than 1,000 police and 40 inflatable boats have also been issued.

East Star, which has carrying capacity of more than 500 people, was heading from Nanjing to Chongqing city, capital of eastern Jiangsu. It sank at about 21:28 in the jianli.

Accident of this magnitude are rare in China, major rivers are used for tourism and cruise. Yangtze tug sank while undergoing sea trials in January sank, killing 22 out of 25 peoples on the board.

In the previous worst incident of its occurrence in China, ship Kiangya blew up on the Huangpu River in southeast China in 1948, killing more than 1,000 people.

East Star is from Chongqing Orient Line, which runs tours on the Yangtze River’s three Gorges regions..

Wang Jianhua, deputy general manager, said it had never encountered such a large scale incident. The official Hubei Daily said that since 1981 the company has been operating.