More than two dozen crew members were missing on the ship which was torn in half after being hit by a tropical storm.
Workers were forced to abandon a sinking industrial ship after Typhoon Chaba triggered dangerous conditions in the South China Sea, hampering rescue efforts.
Dramatic aerial footage showed people being hoisted into helicopters by emergency crews, with at least three of the 30 crew members being taken to safety at around 17:30 local time on Saturday (around 10:30 GMT).
The disaster struck about 300 km (186 miles) south Hong Kong.
Typhoon Chaba, the first to strike Porcelainit would bring record rainfall and high disaster risk to provinces such as Guangdong, which lies about 137 km (85 miles) from Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong Aviation Service, which sent six planes, said crew were battling the storm.
Chaba, the Thai name for the hibiscus flower, landed in western Guangdong on Saturday afternoon local time, the National Meteorological Center said.
Although the storm’s strength has now subsided, “very heavy” rain is expected to bring up to 24 inches (600 mm) of rain to some areas.
“The abundant monsoon water vapor will cause heavy rains and extremely large rainfall accumulations of an extreme nature,” said NMC’s chief forecaster, Gao Shuanzhu.
Hong Kong authorities lifted the typhoon warning on Thursday, as they did Chinese President Xi Jinping has arrived in the city to mark the 25th anniversary of its handover from Britain to China.
The Palace Museum, which will open on Saturday as part of celebrations marking the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover to Chinese rule, remains closed.
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Unfair conditions also forced businesses to close and caused problems for public transport networks.
Bad weather, including unusually large floods, has been predicted in China through August, with climate change to blame.
