World Bulletin/News Desk

Forty-seven people were missing after Typhoon Wutip (Butterfly) sank two fishing boats in the South China Sea, maritime authorities said on Monday.

The boats were lost on Sunday afternoon as they attempted to navigate gales near the Xisha Islands about 330 kilometers from China's island province of Hainan.

The rescuers had retrieved 13 survivors, the sources said, adding that search and rescue operations were continuing.

The National Marine Environmental Forecasting Center warned of storm tides.

Wutip is expected to make landfall on Vietnam's central coast on Tuesday.