Japan-rescued Chinese sailors board Chinese vessel

Sixty four Chinese crew members embarked on a Chinese rescue ship on Monday morning after being saved by Japanese rescuers from a boat that caught fire on Saturday in waters near Okinawa, Chinese maritime rescue officials have announced.

All the sailors rescued by Japanese boats had transferred to Chinese ship East China Sea Rescue 111 by around 9:46 a.m., according to officials of the East China Sea Rescue Bureau under the Ministry of Transport.

The Chinese vessel arrived at 7 a.m. in the sea area where the accident happened, they added.

The 64-strong crew of Mingyang, a refrigerated fishing ship, were plucked from danger in waters near Japan's Okinawa by Japanese rescue ships early on Sunday morning after the fire.

East China Sea Rescue 111 will salvage the fire-razed Mingyang, which measures 144 meters long and 13.6 meters wide, with a transport capacity of 12,703 tonnes. Mingyang is now located at 450 nautical miles southeast of Dachen Island of east China's Zhejiang Province.