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15 die as ships collide on Yangtze

  • Story Highlights
  • Two cargo ships collided on China's Yangtze river on Wednesday morning
  • Rescue crews pulled out one sailor but 15 died and another one is missing
  • The Yangtze is the third longest river in the world and the longest in Asia
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BEIJING, China (CNN) -- Two cargo ships collided on China's Yangtze river Wednesday morning, killing at least 15 sailors, the state-run news agency said.

Yangstze River

Two ships were stranded on the snow-covered banks of the Yangstze River

A cargo ship, with 17 crew members on board, sank after it crashed into another ship about 1730 GMT Tuesday), Xinhua said.

Rescue crews were able to pull out one sailor. Fifteen died, and a sixteenth person was still missing, the news agency said.

Authorities did not say what caused the collision.

Two ships were also left stranded on the snow-covered bank of the river as heavy snow and sleet brought parts of the country to a standstill earlier in the week.

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The Yangtze is the third longest river in the world, running 6,300 kilometers (about 3,900 miles).

Recently its water levels have dropped to record lows.

Measured in Wuhan's Hankou District, the water level fell to 13.98 meters, the lowest compared with the same time of year since records began in 1866.

The drop has affected shipping, fishery and water supply in the region. E-mail to a friend E-mail to a friend

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