River sinking: More than 400 still missing as more survivors found (Updated)

Six people have been pulled alive from the capsized Chinese cruise ship, but hopes are fading for finding most of the more than 400 people still missing. The cruise ship suddenly capsized and sank during a "catastrophic" storm on the Yangtze River.

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Afternoon update

Here is the latest from Associated Press

Rescuers pulled six survivors to safety after hearing cries for help Tuesday from inside a capsized cruise ship that went down overnight in a storm on China's Yangtze River with 458 people aboard, most of them elderly, state broadcaster CCTV said.

At least other 12 people are known to have survived, including the captain and chief engineer, and five people were confirmed dead in the accident late Monday during a cruise from Nanjing to the southwestern city of Chongqing, the broadcaster said.

Search teams heard people calling out from within the partially submerged ship when they climbed aboard the upside-down hull, CCTV reported more than 12 hours after the ship went down in Hubei province about 9.38pm (10.38pm Bangkok time). Footage from the broadcaster showed rescuers in orange life vests climbing on the upside-down hull, with one of them lying down tapping a hammer and listening for a response, then gesturing downward.

Divers later pulled out at least one survivor, a 65-year-old woman, from inside the overturned hull, CCTV said. Then, rescuers reported an additional five people rescued, though no details were given on those rescues, which brought the total number people who reached safety to 18. Many of the initial survivors swam ashore.

The broadcaster said five people were confirmed dead.

The overturned ship had drifted about 3 kilometres downstream before coming to rest close to the river shore, where choppy waters made the rescue difficult. The location is about 180 kilometres west of the Hubei provincial capital of Wuhan.

The fact that the capsized ship drifted downstream was a good sign for rescuers because it meant there was enough air inside to give it buoyancy, and could mean there are enough air pockets for survivors to breathe, said Chi-Mo Park, a professor of naval architecture and ocean engineering at South Korea's Ulsan University.

"It all depends how much space there is inside the vessel," Mr Park said.

More than 400 missing as cruise ship sinks on Yangtze River

AGENCIES

Chinese state media say that at least five people are dead and nearly 450 are missing after a cruise ship sank on the Yangtze River during a torrential rainstorm on Monday night. As of about 10am Thailand time, more than 12 hours after the accident, 20 people had been rescued BBC TV reported although others put the total at 12.  State broadcaster CCTV said the four-level ship was carrying 406 Chinese passengers, five travel agency employees and 47 crew members. Most of the passengers were 50 to 80 years of age.

The ship named Dongfangzhixing, or "Eastern Star", was headed from the eastern city of Nanjing to the southwestern city of Chongqing when it sank in the Jianli section of the river, in Hubei province, on Monday evening, Xinhua said.

Twenty people have been rescued, including the captain and chief engineer, who both said the vessel had been caught in a "cyclone", a "catastrophic" storm, the BBC called it. The ship was said to have sunk within minutes.

Rescue work has been hampered by strong winds and heavy rain, but there is some hope that more survivors will be found. The capsized ship has been found and, according to a twitter message posted by China Central Television rescuers could hear the sounds of people trapped inside. Still, the overall situation seems grim as most of the passengers were elderly.

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