Searchers have discovered Wednesday morning the stern of a Panamanian freighter that sank last week in the sea area off East China's Fujian Province, according to The East China Sea Salvage Bureau under the Ministry of Communications.

Two sailors were rescued and nine bodies have been found so faramong the 37-member crew of the Hengda 1, which went down off the rocky coast of Fujian Province on February 16. The remaining 26 people are still missing and their survival chances are slim, saidrescuers.

Divers found the ship stern at 10:45 PM with the help of five rescue ships and one helicopter. Rescuers said that some of the missing sailors might be in the cabin at the stern.

The rescue operation has been extended to a wider area of sea, including areas near local islands, as it entered the sixth day onWednesday, local salvage department sources said.

The accident occurred at 11:23 PM last Thursday when the shiphit a reef. All 37 crew members aboard fell into the water.

The East China Sea Salvage Bureau dispatched a 14-member rescue team, including 10 divers and engineers, to join the rescue efforts on Sunday.

Rescue work is still going on though strong wind and high waves have hampered the rescue operation.

(Xinhua News Agency February 23, 2006)