CCTV9英语新闻：Divers brave bad weather to rescue 14th survivor

40 hours after the Eastern Star cruise ship capsized. The clock is now ticking to further survivors. More than 3,000 rescuers and 110 search vessels are involved in the search, with bad weather continuing to hamper the operation. Helicopters have also been dispatched to the scene. So far, 14 people have been rescued from the capsized vessel.

 

Rescuers are in a race against time and the weather...with more than 200 divers working around the clock, trying to find signs of life within and around the capsized ship.

 

"The ship is upside down, so there are lots of moving objects...we use our hands to touch and feel..the weather keeps tangling my rope, meaning I have to cut it," Diver Zhang Hucheng said.

 

Experts say there are two parts to the operation.

 

Below the water, 200 divers are taking turns to go into the ship, to check for any signs of life, and try to pull out anyone still trapped.

 

And on top of the ship above water, rescuers are attempting to cut through a section of the hull, in order to clear a passage for a team to get into the ship.

 

Search teams are also combing a nearby bank of the river, to find anyone who might have swam ashore.

 

"We have 10 medical staff working around the clock here. There are all experts from surgical, orthopaedics and emergency departments with experience in rescue operations," Zhou Chilong, dean of Wuhan Gen. Hospital, Guangzhou Military Area Command, said.

 

Rescuers said there could yet be more survivors trapped in the capsized ship wreckage, but strong winds and heavy rain continue to hamper rescue.