A passenger boat found drifting off the East China Sea on Tuesday morning by fishermen belongs to a shipping company in Malaysia, said the local Zhejiang Maritime Search and Rescue Center later Wednesday night.

The center said the tugboat for the 30-meter-long passenger boat, a second-hand high-speed one purchased in South Korea, encountered a main-engine breakdown, and a towing cable sheared off the tugboat due to high waves and winds.

The passenger vessel was found 500 kilometers to the east of Zhoushan in Zhejiang. Authorities will make appropriate arrangements on the drifting boat in line with related maritime regulations, the center said.

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