Vinalines Shipping Company said Vietnam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines) will continue searching for 22 missing Vietnamese crewmen aboard the Vinalines Queen that sank off the coast of the Philippines on Christmas Day, to meet their families’ wish.
A working group of Vinalines in the Philippines said if the weather is favourable on Jan. 16, a Philippine flying service unit will send patrol helicopters to scour the waters within the Philippine territory where Vinalines Queen reportedly went down.
Earlier, on Jan. 8, the Japanese Coast Guard said it will call off the search for missing Vinalines Queen crew until there is a new signal or information about the ship and its crew members.
Meanwhile, rescue groups of Japan, China, the Philippines and Vietnam will continue to ask ships operating in the area to increase observation.
The Vinalines Queen with 23 crewmen on board disappeared after passing Luzon island of the Philippines on Dec. 25. The ship was carrying more than 54,000 tonnes of nickel ore from Indonesia’s Morowali port to Ningde port of China when it lost contact. Only one seaman was rescued, by British ship London Courage on December 30. The survivor, Dau Ngoc Hung, arrived in Vietnam on Jan. 4./.
