On January 6, at 8:00pm local time Saturday two vessels collided off the eastern coast of China, some 160 nautical miles from the Yangtze River. The collision occurred between the Iranian oil tanker Sanchi and the Chinese freighter CF Crystal.
The 274 meter-long Sanchi tanker with 136,000 tons of condensate on board was sailing from Kharg Island to Daesan in South Korea. The CF Crystal was carrying 64,000 tons of grain from USA and was heading to the Guandong province of China.
According to the local authorities, the collision caused a massive fire onboard the Sanchi, forcing the tanker to tilt to the right. Thirty Iranian and two Bengladeshi sailors went missing. The CF Crystal crew of 21, all Chinese, was rescued,
The Chinese authorities confirmed that the Sanchi was in flames and oil has spilled into the sea. Rescue and cleaning boars were deployed to the site. South Korea was also dispatching rescue resources. (Source: Xinhua, Reuters, Press TV, RT)