Maritime New Zealand says a US Air Force Hercules transporting the injured crew of a Korean fishing boat from Antarctica has arrived safely in Christchurch on Friday night.
Forty crew were on board the Jeong Woo 2 which sent out a mayday call from the Ross Sea, about 3700km south-east of New Zealand, early on Wednesday.
[image:4326:full]Three Vietnamese men died after a fire broke out in the accommodation block and spread quickly. Seven men have been injured, including two Vietnamese and one Indonesian who have suffered serious burns.
The men were taken to McMurdo Base in Antarctica by American research ship Nathaniel B Palmer, where they were picked up by the C-130 Hercules and flown to New Zealand.
Christchurch Hospital says the injured men will be admitted overnight but may be moved to Auckland's Middlemore Hospital Burns Unit for further care on Saturday.
The Jeong Woo 2 was still on fire on Thursday and there were plans for sister ship Jeong Woo 3 to tow it outside Antarctic waters to minimise any effect on the environment.
