Survivors Pulled From China Boat Capsizing; Hundreds Missing

03:42

June 02, 2015

The Associated Press

Rescue teams search for survivors near the Dongfangzhixing or 'Eastern Star' vessel which sank in the Yangtze river in Jianli, central China's Hubei province on June 2, 2015. Divers raced to find survivors on June 2 after a Chinese ship sank with more than 450 mainly elderly people in the storm-tossed Yangtze river, raising hopes more people can be found alive. (STR/AFP/Getty Images)

China's CCTV reports a cruise ship carrying 458 people on the Yangtze River capsized within two minutes during a storm that the surviving captain describes as a cyclone.

The official Xinhua News Agency says five people are confirmed dead as rescuers continue to tap on the hull listening for responses from inside. More than 400 people are still missing.

There are several survivors including a few pulled from the wreckage.

CCTV reports the captain and the chief engineer are in custody.

The ship sank in a section of the river where the water is about 50 feet deep. The Yangtze is the world's third-longest river and sometimes floods during the summer monsoon season.

Several rescue ships are searching the water, and divers have been deployed. CCTV says rescue personnel are trying to determine whether they could right the sunken ship.

Guest

Anthony Kuhn, international correspondent for NPR, based in Beijing. He tweets @akuhnNPRnews.

This segment aired on June 2, 2015.