BEIJING, May 20 (UPI) -- Chinese rescuers picked up 97 Vietnamese fishermen Saturday in the South China Sea near the Dongsha Islands, Xinhua news agency reports.
But at least 18 fishermen are dead and hundreds more are still missing, Xinhua said.
The rescue ship was sent on orders from the China Rescue and Salvage Bureau, arriving at the Dongsha Islands at 3:33 a.m.
The Chinese Embassy in Vietnam was notified Friday that 356 fishermen in 12 boats had run out of oil and water.
The CRSB announced that more than 18 fishermen are dead and around 200 are still missing.
The rescue ship provided food, drinking water and oil to the fishing boats. Once the boats were able to sail independently, they joined the Chinese rescue ship in a search for other fishing boats in the area.
