A tug boat left for north China's Tianjin port at 12:05 a.m. on Friday to tow a diving vessel to the area where a ship from South Korea sank on Saturday.

The diving vessel, expected to arrive Saturday morning, will drop anchor in the area and provide a stable working platform for divers.

Chinese authorities on Friday sent nine more divers to the area, bringing the total number of divers involved to twenty-five, according to the latest information from China's Ministry of Communications.

The South Korean ship "Golden Rose" loaded with 5,900 tons of steel sank off the coast near Yantai in east China's Shandong Province, around 3:00 a.m. on Saturday in heavy fog after colliding with the "Jinsheng", a Chinese container ship operated by Shandong Lufeng Shipping Company Ltd.

Sixteen sailors from the "Golden Rose" -- eight South Korea nationals, seven from Myanmar and one from Indonesia -- are still missing almost a week after the accident.

Divers were unable to reach the vessel on Thursday evening due to strong winds and waves, and were waiting to dive again when conditions permitted, the ministry spokesman said.

More than 300 Chinese ships and three aircraft have joined the search for the missing sailors, and China has invited South Korea to send rescue boats and coast guard vessels.

Searchers have found two life rafts, four life rings, a wooden oar, traces of fuel oil and other debris from the "Golden Rose", but no sign of the crew.
 
(Xinhua News Agency May 19, 2007)