Five Chinese Fishing Boats Capsize Off Hainan

One Chinese fisherman drowned and 19 were missing after five boats sank in tropical storm Tiantu off the southern province of Hainan, maritime officials said on Monday.

Rescuers had pulled 53 people from the sea and retrieved one body since the fishing boats capsized during severe tropical storm Tiantu on Friday, an official at the Hainan Provincial Maritime Bureau said.

"Apart from the five sunken boats, we have also lost touch with another fishing boat during the storm," he said.

Hainan's military have deployed two helicopters and a cargo plane in the search, together with some 50 ships, the official said.