Russian sailors save Cambodian tanker crew

The crew of the Russian fishing vessel Rogachevo have saved 19 sailors from a Cambodian tanker that caught fire in the Sea of Japan.

According to the Vladivostok-based Center for Coordinating Rescue Operations at Sea, 14 of the saved sailors are from Russia and 5 from South Korea.

The fire on board the Cambodian motorship Bintang Harapan broke out on Monday evening, when the vessel was sailing across the Russian zone. A distress call issued to the rescue center in Vladivostok was picked up by the trawler Rogachevo, which was at that moment fairly close to the disaster zone.

The Cambodian ship was transporting timber from the Sakhalin port of Alexandrovsk, Russia to South Korea.

The sailors saved from the Bintang Harapan said the fire was sparked by boiler explosion. At this moment, the Russian salvage vessel Naporisty is approaching the burning ship.