China relatives hope for 'miracle' in race to find ship survivors

Relatives of more than 400 people missing after a cruise ship capsized on China's Yangtze river were hoping for a "miracle" Wednesday, as authorities said they were racing against time to find any survivors.

State media said just 14 people have been rescued from the "Eastern Star" which overturned late Monday in a storm, with just a section of its hull visible in the murky waters.

Another 18 bodies have been recovered, state broadcaster CCTV said, leaving hundreds of mostly elderly passengers still missing and possibly trapped within the ship which witnesses said sank in a matter of seconds.  

A total of 456 people had been on board the vessel which was plying a popular tourist route from the eastern city of Nanjing to the southwestern city of Chongqing.

Some 36 hours after the accident, hopes for more survivors are dwindling.

"We are in a race against the clock in the search," transport minister Yang Chuantang said Tuesday.

"It happened suddenly and the rescue has been quite difficult," he said as driving rain hampered the search. "As long as there is the slightest hope, we will make every effort and never give up."

Relatives were also refusing to give up.

"I'm hoping for a miracle," Tan Zhenxing, whose father worked on the boat, told the China Daily newspaper.

Rescuers pulled at least three survivors from the wreckage Tuesday after they cut through part of the ship's overturned hull to reach the interior of the vessel, but then worked through the night in vain.

Grim images broadcast on state-run CCTV showed what appeared to be a dead woman being pulled from the water, her body already rigid.

Fields around the site of the capsized boat were heavily waterlogged, and many of the pathways being used by rescue workers were ankle-deep in mud and rainwater.

Emergency vehicles heading out of a rescue centre set up on the riverside had to pass through deep water, and emergency crews laboured under heavy waterproof clothing and boots.

At a meeting late Tuesday, Premier Li Keqiang urged divers to keep searching the ship in an "overnight battle" to find more survivors, state news agency Xinhua said.

Local reports said the passengers were mostly aged over 60.

Passengers seemed to have little warning before the ship sank, with Zhang Hui, a 43-year-old tour guide on board, telling Xinhua that he had "30 seconds to grab a life jacket".

The captain and chief engineer, who were among the survivors and were being questioned by police, both reportedly said the ship was caught in a freak "cyclone".

CCTV said the 250-foot (76.5-metre) vessel had floated three kilometres (1.9 miles) down river after it capsized in Jianli county, part of the central province of Hubei.

A local man surnamed Wang told AFP that the storm on Monday night was the worst he had seen in years.