Eight people were confirmed dead on Wednesday after a collision between their fishing boat and a Panamanian container ship last week off the southwestern coast of south China's Hainan Province, according to local authorities.

The provincial maritime search and rescue center coordinated the deployment of 23 vessels, one aircraft sortie and 243 personnel on Wednesday to continue surface and aerial searches in the incident area.

A search and rescue operation conducted with professional divers discovered the last two victims in the cabin at around 11 a.m. The bodies were retrieved from the water at around 2 p.m. and then transported back to Sanya via a rescue vessel.

One hundred and sixty-four search and rescue vessels, 19 aircraft and more than 1,500 personnel were dispatched by the provincial maritime search and rescue center for the whole search and rescue effort, cumulatively covering an area of over 10,000 square nautical miles (approximately 34,300 square kilometers).

Seven navigation warnings have been issued to date, and eight underwater search operations have been conducted.

The Panamanian container ship "SITC DANANG" is currently berthing at the anchorage of the Sanya port where it is undergoing investigation.