China's State Administration of Work Safety said yesterday that a Belize-registered cargo vessel, the HARVEST had sank after a collision in the East China Sea.

The 3784 ton vessel, laden with 5000 tons of steel products, had collided at 4:16 on the 8th April with the JIN HAI KUN, a 17,061 grt bulk carrier. The bows of the larger vessel were damaged but the smaller vessel sank.

The JIN HAI KUN is owned and managed by the Fujian Shipping Company of Fuzhou Fujian, China whilst the unfortunate HARVEST was operated by Kailai Toyosawa of Hong Kong.

19 Chinese and one Indian crewmembers were reported missing from the HARVEST after she sank and Zhejiang Province mounted an all-out search for the missing seamen.

The ship went down at co-ordinates 28-20N 122-02E.

The HARVEST was en route to Vietnam from Shanghai whilst the JIN HAI KUN was going to Zhangjiagang in Jiangsu Province after leaving Fuzhou, the capital of the southeastern Fujian province.

The HARVEST was built in 1984 at Gemak in Tuzla and has been previously named UNER I, RHEIN, LU XING, LU CHANG, KAIDA NO 1 and JUN LING. It was only recently (February) that intimations appeared showing her available for sale.