Việt Nam Coast Guard vessel 472 heads to the area where a fishing boat was in distress to carry out search and rescue operations. Photo courtesy of Việt Nam Coast Guard

ĐÀ NẴNG — Central Đà Nẵng city’s authorities are continuing search and rescue efforts for fishing boat QNa-90859-TS, after 32 of its 49 crew members were rescued on Friday, with their health reported to be very weak.

According to the municipal People's Committee, the city's Civil Defence Command received a report at 1.30pm on August 26 that the 23.9m-long squid-fishing vessel, captained by 47-year-old Huỳnh Văn Trí of Núi Thành Commune, had lost contact.

The vessel departed An Hoà port in Núi Thành Commune on July 29 with 49 crew members. Its last position, recorded by its vessel monitoring system at 12:54pm on August 25, was about 17.6 nautical miles from the maritime boundary in Vietnamese waters, 540 nautical miles south-southeast of Sơn Trà peninsula and 35 nautical miles west of An Bang island in the Trường Sa special zone of Khánh Hoà province.

Weather conditions in the area featured southwesterly winds at level 5-6 and rough seas, posing risks to people and vessels.

Upon receiving the report, the municipal People’s Committee instructed relevant forces to coordinate with local authorities and the crew members' families, while calling on nearby vessels to join the rescue and search work.

The information was also reported to the Gia Lai Border Guard Command, the Việt Nam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Centres in Region 2 and 4, and other relevant authorities to coordinate search efforts and verify information concerning the fishing vessel.

At 1.25 pm on Friday, search teams rescued 32 crew members in weakened condition. Coast Guard vessel KN 472 later took them aboard and headed for Trường Sa Lớn Island.

Search, rescue and relief efforts are underway. — VNA/VNS