Four missing after South China Sea offshore wind accident

Offshore construction vessel in operation at Huizhou Gangkou I wind farm tilted with 65 people on board, according to reports

The wind turbine installation vessel Sheng Ping 001 was recently converted from the jack-up offshore construction vessel Teras Fortress 2 (above, pic credit: Teras Offshore)

Four people are missing at sea after an incident at the Shengping offshore construction vessel being used in the final phases of construction at the 250MW Huizhou Gangkou I project in the South China Sea.

According to reports by China’s official news agency, Xinhua, search efforts were continuing on Sunday (25 July) following the rescue of 61 of the 65 people who were on board the vessel when it tilted.

Some 30 rescue vessels and helicopters were involved in the search operations, alongside the State Oceanic Administration's South China Sea Forecast Centre, which was tasked with making drift predictions for the missing people.

The alert with the Guangdong Provincial Maritime Search and Rescue Centre was raised at 11.26am, and by 3.30pm it was announced that 61 people had been rescued, but four were missing.

The wind turbine installation vessel Sheng Ping 001 had recently been converted from the jack-up offshore construction vessel Teras Fortress 2. It is owned by Tianjian Jincheng Offshore Engineering.

China General Nuclear Power Group’s (CGN’s) Huizhou Gangkou I offshore wind farm has been under construction since December 2018. The first few turbines were brought online earlier this year.