News Digest

Agony for relatives as hopes end in China ship sinking

Relatives of passengers missing after a Chinese cruise ship capsized expressed agony and anger on Friday after an official admitted there is no hope of finding more survivors, while cranes slowly raised the vessel out of the water Just 14 of the 456 people – mostly tourists aged over sixty – who were on board the “Eastern Star” when it overturned in a storm on Monday have been found alive. A total of 97 have been confirmed dead, as floating cranes on Friday began to hoist the vessel where bodies of the more than 340 missing may still be trapped.

[Rescuers decided to overturn the ship] on the general judgement that there is no possibility of survival.

Transport ministry spokesman Xu Chengguang

Reports citing witnesses said the boat overturned in under a minute, and weather officials said a freak tornado hit the area at the time. Rescuers used massive cranes Thursday night to right the Eastern Star at the site of the disaster in Hubei province’s Jianli county. Images from state broadcaster CCTV on Friday showed the ship upright but with much of it still submerged. Work was proceeding to hoist it out of the water, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported. Lifting the 76.5 metre long (250 feet) and 2,200 tonne vessel is a delicate and risky operation that could destabilise the wreck.