Vietnamese ship in distress and sunk! Chinese forces, including "Nanhai Rescue 115," rescued 44 people.

According to the Ministry of Transport's Rescue and Salvage Bureau, a Vietnamese-flagged vessel encountered distress and sank in the Nansha waters, with a total of 62 crew members on board. As of 11:00 AM on July 26, China has rescued a total of 44 people in distress.

It is reported that the distressed vessel encountered trouble and sank on the night of July 24, and the people in distress drifted on life rafts to the waters near Yongshu Reef in the Nansha Islands. On its return voyage to Sanya, the "Nanhai Jiu 115" vessel of the South China Sea Rescue Bureau of the Ministry of Transport successively discovered two life rafts in the waters north of Yongshu Reef and rescued a total of 36 people in distress. During this time, the South China Sea Rescue Bureau dispatched the "Nanhai Jiu 113" vessel and the "B-72CT" rescue helicopter to the scene for search and rescue. On July 26, under the unified coordination of the Sansha Maritime Search and Rescue Center, various forces at the scene successively rescued 8 more people in distress.

Currently, 18 crew members from the distressed vessel remain missing, and search and rescue operations are ongoing.