SHANGHAI - Three people went missing after five cargo ships sank on Friday in Wusongkou, where Shanghai's Huangpu River meets the ocean, local maritime authorities said.

Twenty people were aboard the vessels, which sank in succession due to strong gales and high waves, the municipal maritime affairs administration said.

The Shanghai Maritime Search and Rescue Center is searching for the missing.

In a separate incident, another ship sank near the city's Shidongkou dock on the same day, with no immediate reports of casualties.