On August 1st, a leisure fishing boat in Weihai, Shandong Province caught fire and sank, with 5 people on board, resulting in 1 drowning and 4 being sent to the hospital for treatment.
A viral video showed the fishing boat on fire with billowing black smoke on the sea surface. In the video, multiple motorboats were seen rushing to the scene to put out the fire.
On the morning of the 2nd, a local source informed the “Huashang Daily” that the involved vessel was a small oil-burning boat, located about four to five nautical miles away from the coastline in the Gaoxin District of Weihai. However, the exact casualties were unclear.
Officials from the Chinese Coast Guard confirmed that the burning boat was a leisure fishing vessel named “Weigao Yiyuan 1725” and received the distress call at 3:40 pm on August 1st. “Preliminary information indicates an engine fire, which was discovered by nearby fishing boats that launched the rescue operation. There were a total of 5 people on board at the time, including 3 tourists. Apart from the captain, the remaining 4 individuals were rescued and taken to the hospital for treatment.”
Coast Guard officials stated that the involved recreational boat has since sunk, with “the captain still missing. Currently, the Gaoxin District of Weihai is handling the situation and continuing with follow-up measures.”
Subsequently, the Weihai Yiyuan Street Office in Gaoxin District of Shandong issued a situation report, indicating that at around 3:20 pm on August 1st, a leisure boat caught fire near the Mazigang Sea Fishing Tourist Pier in Yiyuan Street of Gaoxin District, Weihai. There were a total of 5 people on board, resulting in 1 drowning and 4 others being sent to the hospital for treatment with no life-threatening injuries.