Four people have gone missing after a wind turbine installation vessel capsized off Guangdong province in southern China on Sunday, July 25.
The jackup installation vessel Sheng Ping 001, formerly named Teras Fortress 2, was operating at an offshore wind farm site off the city of Huizhou on behalf of China General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGN) when flooding was reported on board at around 11:00 local time on Sunday.
Several of the 65 people who were on board Sheng Ping 001 fell into the sea as the vessel tilted to one side due to the flooding.
The Guangdong Provincial Maritime Search and Rescue Centre received a distress call at 11:26 and duly ordered the deployment of vessels and helicopters to the jackup's location. Around 30 vessels and helicopters participated in the subsequent search and rescue (SAR) effort.
All but four of the 65 personnel who were on the jackup were picked up out of the water by 15:30. The vessel was stabilised by salvage teams hours later.
SAR units are continuing to scour the area for any sign of the four missing crewmembers.
Sheng Ping 001 was originally built as an offshore construction vessel in 2015 for Ezion Holdings subsidiary Teras Offshore. The vessel is presently owned by Tianjian Jincheng Offshore Engineering and has since been modified to perform wind turbine installation.
At the time of the capsizing, the jackup was involved in the final stages of construction of CGN's Huizhou Gangkou I wind farm, which will have a generating capacity of 400 MW once completed.
