The Philippine coastguard said on Monday 26 Chinese crewmembers were rescued and two were still missing after their boat began taking on water off the northern Philippines Sunday might.

The MV Jinshan sank Sunday around 5 p.m. (0900 GMT) off Ilocos Norte province, 435 kilometers (275 miles) north of Manila, Coast Guard representative Lieutenant- Commander Armand Balilo said quoted by Reuters.

“Our initial information showed it was passing through Cape Bojeador near the lighthouse when it developed problems,” Balilo said in a statement for the local radio.

The Coastguard swung into action after Beijing’s Maritime Rescue Coordinating Centre sought help late Sunday shortly after the cargo ship went missing, the statement wrote.

Unfortunately, the Japan-bound oil tanker Towada, which was passing by, rescued only 26 out of the 28 crewmembers of the China-flagged vessel. The other two, the ship’s captain and a technician who remained to rescue goods, were declared missing.

“One of our ships and a helicopter are still there searching for the two missing crew,” Balilo said, according to the same media source.

The authorities still do not know why the ship sank, according to Balilo. Also, there have not been released any detail of the state of the ship.