Updated at 1:40 p.m. BJT
41 Chinese nationals have been confirmed dead after two ships carrying mostly Chinese passengers capsized off southern Thailand's Phuket island.
At least 42 people, including 41 Chinese nationals, were killed, and 14 remain missing, Thai authorities confirmed at a news conference on Sunday, adding that one body was spotted inside hull but has not yet been recovered.
Updated at 1:00 p.m. BJT
Search and rescue operations are still underway after two boats capsized in a storm off southern Thailand's Phuket island on Thursday night, killing at least 42 people.
Two Chinese rescue teams, one from the Ministry of Transport with 12 members and another from an organization based in east China's Zhejiang Province, arrived in Phuket on Sunday, and joined the search for the missing passengers along with Thai rescuers.
Police on Saturday said they have charged the captain of sunken ship Phoenix with negligence leading to damages, injury and death.
The captain, who was not identified by the police, has denied the charges.
The Thai government will spare no effort in investigating the cause of the incident and will keep searching for the missing tourists, officials said at a press conference held on Sunday.
Updated at 12:10 p.m. BJT
Preparations are underway to lift a sunken tourist boat that capsized in a storm off southern Thailand's Phuket island, killing at least 42 people.
The Phoenix – which had 105 people on board, including 93 Chinese tourists and 12 Thai crew – went down in rough seas on Thursday evening, in one of Thailand's worst recent accidents.
According to Phuket Governor Norraphat Plodthong, 14 people are still unaccounted for.
Divers have been searching inside the submerged vessel for survivors. Helicopters have also joined the search.
Search and rescue efforts have been boosted after a Chinese team joined the operations, said the governor.
Friends and relatives of the injured and deceased on Sunday began arriving in Phuket to identify their loved ones.
The Phoenix overturned in the Andaman Sea off the coast of Ko He, a popular one-day trip from Phuket.
A second boat carrying 42 passengers, also mainly Chinese nationals, capsized on Thursday evening, but all people on board were rescued.
