25 dead after fire on board foreign-flagged cargo ship in China’s Qingdao

Twenty-five people were killed after a fire broke out on Thursday morning aboard a foreign-flagged cargo ship at China’s eastern port of Qingdao.

The vessel with 42 people on board was undergoing repairs at the state-owned Qingdao Beihai shipyard, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

The blaze, which started at around 11.15am, was put out by 2.30pm, the report said. Twelve people were evacuated safely while five others had to be hospitalised.

President Xi Jinping earlier gave orders to step up search and rescue efforts, according to CCTV, a rare instance of instructions from the top leadership accompanying an accident report. He also called for a swift investigation into the cause of the fire and to ensure prompt follow-up and victim support, the report said.

At least 20 dead in blaze on foreign-flagged cargo ship in China’s Qingdao

All regions and relevant departments must “draw profound lessons from the blaze”, tighten preventive measures and “resolutely curb major accidents to safeguard lives and property”, Xi was quoted as saying.

A photo released by state news agency Xinhua suggests the ship is the Liberia-flagged bulk carrier Ocean Melody. According to the MarineTraffic website, the vessel is moored in Qingdao.