One Vietnamese fisherman is dead and seven others are missing after their ship was hit by a Singaporean-flagged container ship, the Sima Saphire. Sixteen fishermen were on the boat when the collision occurred at 3 am this morning off Vung Tau City. According to the Vung Tau Port Authority, the Sima Saphire was sailing from Ho Chi Minh City to Malaysia when it collided with the fishing boat, which is from Tien Giang Province,  about 50 nautical miles south of Vung Tau, said Le Van Chien, director of the Vung Tau Maritime Port Authority. After the collision the foreign boat’s crew conducted search and rescue operations and saved eight fishermen within a few hours. Vietnamese agencies were informed of the incident and the Vietnam Maritime Rescue Coordination Center for Zone 3 (Vungtau MRCC) sent two rescue boats to the scene to search for the missing men. Vungtau MRCC also asked other fishing boats operating nearby to take part in the search and rescue operations. This morning, the National Committee for Search and Rescue asked the Defense Ministry to send a helicopter to the scene to search for victims. At 8:30 am, the commander of the 917 Air Regimen, Tran Van Quang, told VnExpress.net that he was on a helicopter flying to the scene to direct rescue efforts.  At 9 am rescuers found the body of one fisherman, while the remaining seven fishermen are missing. The Committee asked the Tien Giang Provincial Border Guard and the province  Steering Board for Storms and Floods and Search and Rescue to mobilize their forces and asked local fishing boats operating nearby to help search for victims.  Efforts to find the missing fishermen are ongoing.