Bodies of seven more Chinese seamen who went missing after their oil tanker collided with a bulk carrier off Malaysian coast in Malacca Straits have been found, said an official of the Chinese Embassy to Malaysia on Saturday.

The official said the bodies were found at around 9:30 p.m. local time and had all been taken back to the land. Their identity needs further confirmation, the official added.

A naphtha-transporting tanker owned by a Taiwan company collided with a bulk carrier Aug. 18 night near Port Dickson in the Malacca Straits and caught fire in seconds.

Sixteen of the 25 Chinese seamen on board the tanker escaped in life boats and nine others went missing. Bodies of two victims were found Friday. 　

(Xinhua News Agency August 23, 2009)