BEIJING - China has rescued a foreign container ship that caught fire in the South China Sea, saving the lives of its 25 foreign crew members, the Ministry of Transport said on Monday.

On July 28, four containers on a large Liberian-registered container ship suddenly caught fire approximately 190 nautical miles northwest of Yongshu Reef in China's Nansha Islands, threatening the safety of the crew and international shipping routes, according to the ministry.

Upon receiving the alert from the Hainan provincial maritime search and rescue center, the ministry's Nanhai Rescue Bureau (NRB) promptly initiated an emergency response and dispatched a rescue ship. The ship, which had been on routine patrol duty nearby, moved at full speed to the scene. To ensure the efficiency of rescue operations and the safety of personnel, a rescue helicopter was dispatched to transmit real-time updates on the fire situation.

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Visible flames were extinguished by about 2 pm on July 30. Following repeated inspections, rescue crews confirmed that no residual fire risks remained by the evening of Aug 1, securing the safety of the crew, vessel and cargo while preventing secondary disasters like marine pollution.

The rescue vessel remains on-site, safeguarding the container ship to ensure its subsequent voyage safety.

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The ministry said that the Chinese government attaches great importance to the safety of international shipping channels in the South China Sea. The successful rescue has not only tested China's emergency response capabilities in deep-sea and far-sea areas, but also demonstrated through concrete actions China's ability to safeguard the lives and property of people at sea, and to ensure the smoothness of international shipping channels.