By RIA Novosti
Kiev : Divers have recovered a third body from a Ukrainian vessel that sank in the South China Sea on March 22, the Ukrainian emergencies minister said on Friday.
The Ukrainian tug, Naftogaz-67, sank after colliding with a Chinese vessel off the southern coast of China, near Hong Kong. Out of the 25 sailors on board, only seven were rescued.
“The body of another sailor was discovered yesterday,” Volodymyr Shandra said. He added that strong sea currents had hindered the recovery operation and that rescuers were trying to pull the vessel to shallow waters.
Earlier attempts to pull the Naftogaz-67 to shallow waters failed, as the ship’s mast is embedded seven meters into the seabed, fixing the 2,723-ton vessel.
Two other bodies were removed on Wednesday.
The South China Morning Post said this week that the Naftogaz-67 had been detained three times in ports around the world in the past five years over various violations.
The vessel was last checked in south China last October, when inspectors detected six safety violations, including navigational, oil leaks, as well as power and support system failures.
Earlier this week, Anatoliy Prisyazhnyuk, the owner of the Ukrainian vessel, blamed the Chinese dry cargo ship for the fatal collision. The Chinese vessel suffered minor bow damage and remained afloat.
A Ukrainian delegation of officials from the emergencies, transport and fuel and energy ministries arrived in Hong Kong late on Tuesday to look into the cause of the accident.