Oil Tanker Collision: Rescuers retrieve two more bodies from burning oil tanker

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Rescuers have found two more bodies from a burning oil tanker in the East China Sea. But dozens remain missing after the ship collided with a Hong Kong-registered freighter last week. CGTN's Wei Lynntang has the latest.

Two more bodies were found on board the Sanchi oil tanker Saturday morning, bringing the current body count to three. There were 32 sailors on board the Iranian managed vessel before the collision occurred. 30 from Iran and 2 from Bangladesh. The ship's data recorder, similar to a plane's black box, was also retrieved.

WEI LYNN TANG SHANGHAI "The main concern was that the oil tanker could possibly explode, and spill large amounts of oil out into the open sea. Experts today say there is less chance a big-scale explosion, and should an explosion occur, it would likely be on a smaller scale."

XUE ZHOU VICE MANAGER, COSMO SHIPPING "The condensate oil is still burning, and the fumes are definitely harmful. But due to the wind direction and the cold air, coastal areas of China will not be affected very much. And I consider burning oil to be less polluting than an oil spill. In general, the rescue measures that we have taken so far are effective. It's very likely that the fire will be contained."

HE WANG, CHEMICAL EXPERT DAYA BAY HUADE PETROCHEMICALS "The fire may continue for about one or two weeks. The tanker is unlikely to sink, but there is a risk of it overturning, because three cabins have been flooded."

That said, the mission to find the missing sailors is still fraught with risk. The gas that emanates from condensate oil is toxic to humans when exposed to air.

He Wang says it could take 1 to 2 more weeks before the fire on the oil tanker dies down, because of the huge amount of product on board – some 111-thousand tonnes of condensate oil. The best way forward, according to He, is to let the oil tanker continue to burn and evaporate the condensate oil.

Thirteen rescue boats have been dispatched to help – one from South Korea, and two from Japan. These teams will focus on preventing pollution, extinguishing the fire, and searching for the victims. The cause of the collision has not yet been ascertained. WLT, CGTN, Shanghai.