A ship carrying 1,500 tonnes of coal sunk on Tuesday evening when travelling through sea areas near Vietnam's central Quang Nam province, with 15 crew members on board missing, said an online news source here on Wednesday.

The ship, belonging to a private owner in Vietnam, ran into an accident in the bad weather and then sunk, according to the www.vnexpress.net.

The local maritime rescue centre has sent rescue ship to look for the missing crew members, but typhoon causing rains and strong waves adds difficulty to the rescue work.