6 saved as gale-force winds lash waterways

By Dong Zhen and Lu Feiran  |   2008-7-31  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

SIX Chinese sailors were rescued from a capsized cargo vessel Tuesday evening as the tropical storm Fung Wong swept along waters at the mouth of the Yangtze River, maritime officials said yesterday.

Fung Wong, which means "phoenix" in Cantonese, had forced hundreds of vessels to drop anchor in local waters yesterday.

The gale-force winds reached 74 kilometers an hour in the city, and were stronger at the Yangtze River mouth, the Shanghai Meteorological Bureau said.

Fung Wong's effects on Shanghai are expected to end today, with the temperature rising back 34 to 35 degrees Celsius for the rest of the week.

Thunderstorms are expected to strike every afternoon until the end of the week, the bureau said.

An Anhui Province cargo vessel, carrying six sailors and 4,700 tons of sand, was wrecked when its engine broke down as the storm hit on Tuesday evening, officials said.

Rescue efforts were launched when the authorities received an emergency call from the ship at 6:16pm.

The drifting ship was quickly swamped with massive waves. Strong winds and a big swell made it difficult for rescue craft to approach the vessel.

When rescuers finally boarded, the cargo vessel's bow had started to sink.

Meanwhile, strong winds disconnected the anchors of 17 large vessels at the mouth of the Yangtze River, the maritime watchdog said.

The ships were all re-stabilized.

The local port authority was still on full alert yesterday as the storm lashed the city's shipping traffic.

By yesterday morning, more than 30 foreign vessels pulling into Wusong Port had delayed or canceled arrivals because of the storm, Wusong Port immigration police said.

At Waigaoqiao Port, transport of 3,000 Chinese-made sedans was delayed as the two foreign vessels picking them up were caught in the storm.

After a delay of nearly 30 hours, the 3,000 sedans were finally moved onto the vessels, police said.