It is learned from the State Marine Bureau that China will put life-saving special telephone into unified use nationwide, with the phone number being 12395. As long as the personnel of a ship in distress dial out the phone, they can be rescued.

Up to now, China has listed 40 cities as the first group to set up this life-saving telephone line.

The State Marine Bureau under the Communications Ministry has also required that all the salvage centers and local marine bureaus use the above-mentioned telephone as the "special stand-by phone".

Observers noted that this measure is an important part of the efforts made by the Chinese marine authorities to step up management over water transport safety..

The Chinese communications department has declared 2000 as the "Year of the Water Transport Safety Management". It also has adopted practical measures to intensify safety management of passenger ships (including passenger barges, and passenger ferries) and dangerous cargo transport ships sailing along the Bohai Bay, the Qiongzhou Straits, the Zhoushan Islands and the Yangtze River..