One dead, four still missing from sunken ship off Taiwan

Four crewmembers remain missing and one has been confirmed dead from the general cargo ship Fu Shun that sank in stormy weather off the coast of southern Taiwan.

Tanzanian-flagged 56-m-long vessel went down around 19 nautical miles off the coast of Kaohsiung City on Thursday, after Typhoon Gaemi swept across the island.

The crew of nine seafarers from Myanmar managed to abandon the 1985-built ship in life jackets. Rescue officials in Taiwan said Friday that four had been found alive, with one dead body identified as the ship’s captain.

The surviving crewmember were found on land and search and rescue efforts continue both at sea and onshore. The strongest typhoon to hit Taiwan in eight years also caused several other ships to run aground and efforts to retrieve their crewmembers are underway.