BEIJING, Jan 14 (Reuters) - A stricken Iranian oil tanker that had drifted into Japan’s exclusive economic zone “suddenly ignited” at noon (0400 GMT), and was in danger of capsizing “at any time”, Chinese state television said on Sunday.

The tanker has been adrift and on fire for more than a week following a collision with another vessel in the East China Sea.</s>BEIJING, Jan 14 (Reuters) - A burning Iranian oil tanker that had drifted into Japan’s exclusive economic zone has sunk after a collision on Jan. 6, Chinese state television said on Sunday.

The stricken tanker, called the Sanchi, which had been adrift and on fire for more than a week following the accident with another vessel in the East China Sea, had “suddenly ignited” around noon (0400 GMT), China Central Television said. (Reporting by Michael Martina and Tina Qiao; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)</s>A burning Iranian tanker listing for days off the coast of China after a collision with another vessel sank Sunday, with an Iranian official saying there was "no hope" of survival for the 29 missing sailors onboard.

Iranian state television reported that the Sanchi had sunk Sunday, days after its collision in the East China Sea. An anchorwoman on state television also offered condolences on behalf of the nation for the loss.

China's state broadcaster confirmed the ship had sunk and also said the ship's voice data recorder, which functions like "black boxes" on aircraft, had been recovered.

The cause of the collision, 160 miles off the coast of Shanghai, remains unclear. Three bodies have been recovered from the sea, leaving 29 crew members still unaccounted for. The crew was all Iranian expect for two Bangladeshis.

Iranian state TV had earlier quoted the chief of Iran's maritime agency, Mahmoud Rastad, as saying: "There is no hope of finding survivors among the (missing) 29 members of the crew."

The Chinese freighter CF Crystal, which collided with the Panamanian-registered tanker, had 21 crew members, all of whom were reported safe.

Thirteen ships, including one from South Korea and two from Japan, were engaged in the rescue and cleanup effort Saturday, spraying foam in an effort to extinguish the fire. The tanker was carrying a cargo of nearly 1 million barrels of condensate, a type of gassy, ultra-light oil that readily evaporates or burns off in a fire, reducing the chance of a major oil spill.

Intense flames, bad weather and poor visibility have all hampered rescue efforts.</s>An Iranian oil tanker has sunk after burning for more than a week following a collision on Jan. 6 in the East China Sea, Chinese state media said on Sunday, adding that large amounts of oil are burning in the surrounding waters.

The stricken tanker, called the Sanchi, which had been adrift and on fire following the accident with the freighter CF Crystal, had "suddenly ignited" around noon (0400 GMT), China Central Television (CCTV) said.

"Currently it has already sunk," CCTV said, citing the Shanghai maritime search and rescue centre. It showed video of a tower of billowing black smoke that it said reached as high as 1,000 metres, and flames on the surface of the water. The ship sank before 5 p.m. (0900 GMT), the broadcaster said.

China’s State Oceanic Administration said that because the hull of the ship had detonated, a large amount of oil in surrounding waters was on fire, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

The Administration said it would expand the scope of its monitoring and "quickly ascertain the spread and drift of overflowing oil" from the wrecked ship.

A Chinese salvage team on Saturday recovered two bodies from the tanker. Another body, presumed to be one of the Sanchi’s sailors, was found on Monday and brought to Shanghai for identification.

The Sanchi’s crew consisted of 30 Iranians and two Bangladeshis.

Iranian officials said the remaining 29 crew members and passengers of the tanker were presumed dead. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani sent messages of condolence to the families of the crew and called for an investigation into the accident, Iranian state media reported.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi earlier told his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif by telephone that "as long as there is 1 percent of hope, China will continue to make 100 percent effort" to rescue and recover the crew.

The tanker, owned by National Iranian Tanker Co, was carrying almost 1 million barrels of condensate, an ultra-light crude oil, to South Korea.

It collided with the CF Crystal (IMO:9497050), which was carrying grain from the United States, about 160 nautical miles (184 km) off China’s coast near Shanghai.</s>BEIJING (Reuters) - An Iranian oil tanker has sunk after burning for more than a week following a collision on Jan. 6 in the East China Sea, Chinese state media said on Sunday, adding that large amounts of oil are burning in the surrounding waters.

The stricken tanker, called the Sanchi (IMO:9356608), which had been adrift and on fire following the accident with the freighter CF Crystal, had "suddenly ignited" around noon (0400 GMT), China Central Television (CCTV) said.

"Currently it has already sunk," CCTV said, citing the Shanghai maritime search and rescue center. It showed video of a tower of billowing black smoke that it said reached as high as 1,000 meters, and flames on the surface of the water. The ship sank before 5 p.m. (0900 GMT), the broadcaster said.

China's State Oceanic Administration said that because the hull of the ship had detonated, a large amount of oil in surrounding waters was on fire, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

The Administration said it would expand the scope of its monitoring and "quickly ascertain the spread and drift of overflowing oil" from the wrecked ship.

A Chinese salvage team on Saturday recovered two bodies from the tanker. Another body, presumed to be one of the Sanchi's sailors, was found on Monday and brought to Shanghai for identification.

The Sanchi's crew consisted of 30 Iranians and two Bangladeshis.

Iranian officials said the remaining 29 crew members and passengers of the tanker were presumed dead. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani sent messages of condolence to the families of the crew and called for an investigation into the accident, Iranian state media reported.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi earlier told his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif by telephone that "as long as there is 1 percent of hope, China will continue to make 100 percent effort" to rescue and recover the crew.

The tanker, owned by National Iranian Tanker Co, was carrying almost 1 million barrels of condensate, an ultra-light crude oil, to South Korea.

It collided with the CF Crystal (IMO:9497050), which was carrying grain from the United States, about 160 nautical miles (184 km) off China's coast near Shanghai.</s>A burning Iranian oil tanker that had drifted into Japan's exclusive economic zone has sunk after a collision on Jan. 6, Chinese state television said on Sunday.

BEIJING: An Iranian oil tanker has sunk after burning for more than a week following a collision on Jan. 6 in the East China Sea, Chinese state media said on Sunday, adding that large amounts of oil are burning in the surrounding waters.

The stricken tanker, called the Sanchi (IMO:9356608), which had been adrift and on fire following the accident with the freighter CF Crystal, had "suddenly ignited" around noon (0400 GMT), China Central Television (CCTV) said.

"Currently it has already sunk," CCTV said, citing the Shanghai maritime search and rescue centre. It showed video of a tower of billowing black smoke that it said reached as high as 1,000 metres, and flames on the surface of the water. The ship sank before 5 p.m. (0900 GMT), the broadcaster said.

China's State Oceanic Administration said that because the hull of the ship had detonated, a large amount of oil in surrounding waters was on fire, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

The Administration said it would expand the scope of its monitoring and "quickly ascertain the spread and drift of overflowing oil" from the wrecked ship.

A Chinese salvage team on Saturday recovered two bodies from the tanker. Another body, presumed to be one of the Sanchi's sailors, was found on Monday and brought to Shanghai for identification.

The Sanchi's crew consisted of 30 Iranians and two Bangladeshis.

Iranian officials said the remaining 29 crew members and passengers of the tanker were presumed dead. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani sent messages of condolence to the families of the crew and called for an investigation into the accident, Iranian state media reported.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi earlier told his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif by telephone that "as long as there is 1 percent of hope, China will continue to make 100 percent effort" to rescue and recover the crew.

The tanker, owned by National Iranian Tanker Co, was carrying almost 1 million barrels of condensate, an ultra-light crude oil, to South Korea.

It collided with the CF Crystal (IMO:9497050), which was carrying grain from the United States, about 160 nautical miles (184 km) off China's coast near Shanghai.</s>BEIJING, Jan 14 (Reuters) - An Iranian oil tanker has sunk after burning for more than a week following a collision on Jan. 6 in the East China Sea, Chinese state media said on Sunday, adding that large amounts of oil are burning in the surrounding waters.

The stricken tanker, called the Sanchi (IMO:9356608), which had been adrift and on fire following the accident with the freighter CF Crystal, had "suddenly ignited" around noon (0400 GMT), China Central Television (CCTV) said.

"Currently it has already sunk," CCTV said, citing the Shanghai maritime search and rescue centre. It showed video of a tower of billowing black smoke that it said reached as high as 1,000 metres, and flames on the surface of the water. The ship sank before 5 p.m. (0900 GMT), the broadcaster said.

China's State Oceanic Administration said that because the hull of the ship had detonated, a large amount of oil in surrounding waters was on fire, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

The Administration said it would expand the scope of its monitoring and "quickly ascertain the spread and drift of overflowing oil" from the wrecked ship.

A Chinese salvage team on Saturday recovered two bodies from the tanker. Another body, presumed to be one of the Sanchi's sailors, was found on Monday and brought to Shanghai for identification.

The Sanchi's crew consisted of 30 Iranians and two Bangladeshis.

Iranian officials said the remaining 29 crew members and passengers of the tanker were presumed dead. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani sent messages of condolence to the families of the crew and called for an investigation into the accident, Iranian state media reported.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi earlier told his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif by telephone that "as long as there is 1 percent of hope, China will continue to make 100 percent effort" to rescue and recover the crew.

The tanker, owned by National Iranian Tanker Co, was carrying almost 1 million barrels of condensate, an ultra-light crude oil, to South Korea.

It collided with the CF Crystal (IMO:9497050), which was carrying grain from the United States, about 160 nautical miles (184 km) off China's coast near Shanghai.</s>An Iranian oil tanker burning for more than a week in the East China Sea exploded and sank on Sunday, Chinese state television reported.

The Sanchi erupted into flames after colliding with a Hong Kong-registered freighter on January 6, CCTV reported.

China’s transport ministry said the tanker “suddenly exploded” around noon on Sunday and was quickly engulfed in fire, with the smoke and flames rising as high 1km (3,300 feet).

An Iranian official also said on Sunday there was no chance of finding alive any of the tanker’s 32 crew members.

Two bodies recovered from oil tanker ablaze in East China Sea

“There is no hope of finding survivors among the members of the crew,” Mohammad Rastad, spokesman for the Iranian rescue team sent to Shanghai, told Iran’s state broadcaster.

The Sanchi, carrying 136,000 tonnes of light crude oil from Iran, collided with the CF Crystal, a Hong Kong-registered bulk freighter, 160 nautical miles east of Shanghai.

It remains unclear if there has been a significant oil leak into the sea.

Rastad said information from members of the Crystal crew suggested all the personnel on the Sanchi were killed in the first hour of the accident “due to the explosion and the release of gas”.

Oil tanker ablaze in East China Sea could burn for a month

“Despite our efforts, it has not been possible to extinguish the fire and recover the bodies due to repeated explosions and gas leaks,” he said.

“Two-thirds of the tanker is submerged, and the fire has spread to the entirety of the ship, and we can no longer approach it.”</s>Beijing — The Iranian oil tanker Sanchi sank into the East China Sea on Sunday afternoon after a blast, causing a "serious" oil spill that covered 10km², state television reported, citing China’s State Oceanic Administration.

The oil from the tanker was still burning, China Central Television reported on Sunday. A State Oceanic Administration official reached by phone said the administration is collecting data from the spill area, and the administration said on its website that the spill will have an impact on the environment. All 32 crew members on board the vessel that had been burning for a week were presumed dead, said an Iranian official on Sunday.

The Sanchi was ferrying almost 1-million barrels of condensate — a highly flammable hydrocarbon liquid that is used in petrochemical production — when it collided with bulk carrier CF Crystal off the coast of Shanghai on January 6.

If all the condensate leaked into the sea instead of burning off, the spill would be one of the biggest from a ship over the past five decades. The cargo size of about 150,000 metric tons aboard the Sanchi exceeds the 35,000 tons of crude that the Exxon Valdez spilled near Alaska — the biggest such incident in US history. That 1989 spill led to the destruction of thousands of marine fauna and long-term environmental damage.</s>TEHRAN, Iran -- A burning Iranian tanker listing for days off the coast of China after a collision with another vessel sank Sunday, with an Iranian official saying there was "no hope" of survival for the 29 missing sailors onboard.

Iranian state television reported that the Sanchi had sunk Sunday, days after its collision in the East China Sea. An anchorwoman on state television also offered condolences on behalf of the nation for the loss.

State TV quoted Mahmoud Rastad, the chief of Iran's maritime agency, as saying: "There is no hope of finding survivors among the (missing) 29 members of the crew."

President Hassan Rouhani expressed his condolences and called on relevant government agencies to investigate the tragedy and take any necessary legal measures, according to state TV.

Chinese officials could not be immediately reached for comment Sunday night, though the state-run broadcaster CGTN reported that the Sanchi had sunk. CGTN also said the ship's voice data recorder, which functions like "black boxes" on aircraft, had been recovered.

The cause of the collision, 257 kilometres (160 miles) off the coast of Shanghai, remains unclear. Three bodies have been recovered from the sea, leaving 29 crew members still unaccounted for. The crew was all Iranian expect for two Bangladeshis.

The Chinese freighter CF Crystal, which collided with the Panamanian-registered tanker, had 21 crew members, all of whom were reported safe.

Television footage Saturday showed parts of the Sanchi still aflame, its hull and superstructure completely stripped of paint.

Thirteen ships, including one from South Korea and two from Japan, were engaged in the rescue and cleanup effort Saturday, spraying foam in an effort to extinguish the fire. The tanker was carrying a cargo of nearly 1 million barrels of condensate, a type of gassy, ultra-light oil that readily evaporates or burns off in a fire, reducing the chance of a major oil spill.

Intense flames, bad weather and poor visibility have all hampered rescue efforts.

The tanker has operated under five different names since it was built in 2008, according to the U.N.-run International Maritime Organization. The National Iranian Tanker Co. describes itself as operating the largest tanker fleet in the Middle East.

It's the second collision for a ship from the National Iranian Tanker Co. in less than a year and a half. In August 2016, one of its tankers collided with a Swiss container ship in the Singapore Strait, damaging both ships but causing no injuries or oil spill.
An oil tanker sinks in the East China Sea after burning for a week, causing a major spill.