Ship fire at Chinese port leaves 25 dead | CBC News

25 people killed in commercial ship fire in China

Ship at the port in Qingdao was reportedly undergoing repairs after arriving nearly 2 weeks ago

Twenty-five people died in a fire aboard a foreign cargo vessel undergoing repairs at a state-owned ‌shipyard in the eastern Chinese city of Qingdao on Thursday, state media reported.

The fire broke out ​at about 11:15 a.m. local time at the ​Qingdao Beihai shipyard during repair and inspection works, state-run Xinhua said. Of the 42 people ​onboard, 12 were evacuated safely and five were ⁠injured and hospitalized.

The ⁠blaze was extinguished ‌by early afternoon, state media said.

Chinese President ​Xi Jinping called for intensified search and rescue efforts, a swift ⁠investigation and accountability measures, according to Xinhua.

A picture of the scene released by Xinhua showed the vessel involved to be the Ocean Melody. LSEG ship-tracking ⁠data identified it as a 20-year-old Liberia-flagged dry bulk carrier managed by Yuyangkunpeng Shanghai Shp Mgm, with Huili Shipping Co. Ltd. ‌listed as its registered owner.

The vessel arrived at the Qingdao shipyard on Aug. 31 and has remained there since, LSEG data showed.

The shipyard is controlled ⁠by state-owned China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), one of the ⁠world's ⁠largest shipbuilders.

CSSC describes itself ​as China's principal naval shipbuilder and the country's largest designer ​and builder of ⁠ships and offshore equipment.