Largest ever search and rescue drill to take place on Pearl River

A drill will be conducted by the State-level and Guangdong provincial centers of maritime search and rescue on Thursday in the Pearl River Estuary, the largest exercise of its kind ever organized.

In total, 35 vessels, four planes and more than 1,300 people will participate in the drill, which will also see involvement from the maritime search and rescue forces of Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions.

A collision between a foreign cargo ship carrying hazardous chemicals and a high-speed passenger ship heading from Zhuhai, Guangdong province to Hong Kong will be simulated in the waters off Guishan Island as part of the drill.

"With the rapid development of sea transport, an increasing number of high-speed passenger ships and cargo ships carrying chemicals are navigating China’s coastal waters, which raises the risk of a crash between the two," said Zhuo Li, deputy director of the national center of maritime search and rescue, at a media briefing on Wednesday.

"The waters of the Pearl River Estuary are prone to marine accidents, given the busy traffic, special geographical location and complicated weather and sea conditions.

"Conducting drills regarding maritime search and rescue will help enhance the security of sea transport in these waters and serve the Belt and Road Initiative."

Zhuo said that China had held discussions with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on establishing a cooperative maritime search and rescue mechanism to maintain navigation and offshore production safety in the South China Sea.

A blueprint for information sharing in case of emergencies has also been discussed and a joint maritime search and rescue drill will be conducted by China and ASEAN members in Guangdong this September, Zhuo added.

The Pearl River Estuary is one of the country’s busiest waterways, with more than 4,000 ships sailing across it every day. Its largest ports include Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Hong Kong and Macao.

About 400 accidents and incidents have been recorded in the estuary in the past three years, involving about 4,900 people. Since 2014, Guangdong has stepped up its efforts to increase safety on the river and the number of accidents fell to 11 in 2015, a year-on-year decrease, according to Zhuang Zeping, deputy director of the provincial center of maritime search and rescue.

"The joint drill with Hong Kong and Macao will increase our ability to cooperatively handle marine emergencies and create a safe environment for the construction of Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and the development of the Pearl River Estuary into a world-class port cluster," Zhuang said.