Sunken ship lifted as search for the missing continues

Rescue workers enter the hoisted sunken cruise ship Eastern Star to search for hundreds of others still unaccounted for on June 5, 2015, 4 days after the vessel capsizes with more than 450 onboard. [Photo: Xinhua]

The death toll from a Chinese cruise ship that capsized on the Yangtze River during freak weather has climbed to 396 as of Saturday noon.

Huge cranes hoisted the Eastern Star from murky waters of the Yangtze River on Friday afternoon, nearly four days after the cruise ship capsized with more than 450 onboard.

Only 14 people have been found alive so far, while another 46 people remain missing, according to the rescue headquarters in Jianli, central China's Hubei Province.

More than 3,400 soldiers, 1,700 paramilitary people together with 149 vessels, 59 machines and a helicopter have joined in the rescue mission.

Liu Xiaowu, an officer with Guangzhou Military Area Command on the scene in Jianli in central China's Hubei province, said the rescuers' focus had moved to the interior of the hull, and they hope to complete the search in seven hours.

The decision to right the upturned ship and hoist it out of the water was made after divers' efforts in the past three days to search the ship for survivors were in vain. Rescuers are continuing to comb an extended area of the Yangtze River for survivors.

The Eastern Star was on a 11-day trip along the Yangtze River when it was overturned on Monday night by what the captain described as a freak tornado. Since then, More than 3,400 soldiers, 1,700 paramilitary people together with 149 vessels, 59 machines and a helicopter have joined in the rescue mission.

President Xi Jinping has demanded a serious investigation into the cause of the tragedy. On Friday, Vice Premier Ma Kai visited the site, asking for swift rescue operation inside the hull and proper treatment of the retrieved bodies.

DISTRAUGHT RELATIVES

More than 1,200 relatives of those on board arrived in Jianli on Thursday afternoon. On Friday, many of them went to the riverbank to watch the ship being raised.

Many of those watching appeared to be in their 30s and 40s. Some broke down in tears when the vessel emerged from the river. Others looked more calm but exhausted after anxiously waiting for the news of their loved ones for days.

A woman from Tianjin was seen kneeling and bowing toward the ship murmuring, "If you have spirit, please come home with me."

A 63-year-old man, who wished not to have his real name revealed in the report, was among the 14 survivors but his wife remains missing. He recalled how suddenly the ship overturned, flinging him out of the cabin window while his wife was trapped in the sinking hulk.

"I even did not have the chance to take a last look at her," he said. "We've been married for over 30 years. We've just retired and had plans for a happy retirement life. We never expected this."

Authorities in Jianli have asked relatives to provide blood samples to match their DNA with that of the victims.

The government of Yueyang, a city in Hunan Province near the site of the tragedy, said workers are standing by in mortuaries with coffins and body bags prepared.