Capsized Yangtze River passenger ship Dong Fang Zhi Xing has been righted by the search and rescue team on 5 June at 07:30 h.
The search and rescue team started to hoist the capsized cruise ship at 16:00 h local time on 4 June, according to the MoT.
The ship was hoisted by cranes capable of lifting the whole vessel and set it upright and one side of the ship was rolled above water.
Meanwhile, the death toll from the capsizing has climbed to 97, Ministry of Transport (MoT) official Xu Chengguang told a press conference at 10:20 h local time.
Related news:Rescuers recover 39 more bodies from Yangtze River
The decision to upright the capsized ship was made as chances of finding more survivors in the ship have become increasingly slim, said Xu at the press conference, as detection equipment used in recent searches has failed to locate any signs of life.
Xu explained the decision to lift and upright the capsized wreckage would help find the missing “in the shortest possible time” and “protect the dignity of the deceased” as much as possible.
Rescue workers carry a body recovered from a capsized cruise ship in the Yangtze River. Photo: PA
As of 17:00 h on 4 June, 2,097 rescuers, 202 divers, 131 vessels, and three salvage vessels have taken part in the search and rescue. The Three Gorges Dam, upstream from the accident site, has reduced the flow of water by more than half, from 17,200 m³ per second to just 7,000 m³, to help the rescue effort.
This post was sourced from IHS Maritime 360: View the original article here.
