3 crew of capsized Hong Kong ship rescued, crew pulled off helicopter

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3 crew of capsized Hong Kong ship rescued, crew pulled off helicopter

Screengrab taken from the official Instagram account of Hong Kong s Government Flying Service shows a member of a capsized vessel being lifted onto the service's helicopter.

HONG KONG - Hong Kong's Government Flying Service said three crew members of a vessel in distress have been rescued and a search and rescue operation is still ongoing for about two dozen other seamen who have been unaccounted for.

READ MORE: HKO says to lower the typhoon signal to No 3 before 5 pm.

The GFS said it received a rescue request from the Hong Kong Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre at 7: 25 am Saturday.

This screengrab taken from the official Instagram account of Hong Kong's Government Flying Service shows part of a vessel that has been snapped into two in heavy seas.

A vessel, located about 160 nm about 300 km southwest of Hong Kong, suffered substantial damage and broke into two pieces with about 30 seamen onboard, according to the GFS.

The seamen had abandoned the ship and were waiting to be rescued.

Typhoon signal No 8 was in force when the accident happened and the sea was rough under the influence of typhoon Chaba.

This screengrab taken from the official Instagram account of Hong Kong s Government Flying Service shows the location where a vessel snapped into two in heavy seas amid typhoon signal No 8.

The GFS said it had deployed one fixed-wing aircraft and two rescue helicopters to conduct the search and rescue operation. A Chinese mainland rescue boat was also on scene.

The weather condition was harsh, making rescue efforts difficult, and the accident happened near the centre of typhoon Chaba.