BEIJING -- China's Ministry of Emergency Management (MEM) and Ministry of Transport have dispatched a working team to the central province of Hunan to guide rescue efforts after a passenger boat collided with an oil waste recovery vessel on Tuesday morning, according to MEM.

The incident occurred at approximately 10 am on the Yuanshui River in Qinglang township, Yuanling county. The passenger boat capsized and sank after impact, leaving two people dead and 14 missing, according to the provincial emergency management bureau.

MEM has also dispatched a national water emergency rescue team with sonar and diving equipment to the scene to aid rescue work, urging efforts to determine the cause of the incident as soon as possible and prevent similar events from taking place again.

Three survivors have been pulled from the water, all of whom have been hospitalized and are in stable condition. Search efforts are ongoing, according to local authorities.