SHANGHAI -- A foreign vessel carrying 14 people sank near the Yangtze estuary Thursday, Shanghai maritime authority said.

The ship carrying 4,850 tonnes of coil steel overturned early Thursday morning after a suspected collision, according to an official with the Shanghai maritime bureau.

The 97-meter-long vessel is registered in Kiribati, an island country in the west Pacific Ocean.

Two crew were rescued by a nearby Panama-registered vessel. The search continues for the remaining 12.

A total of 17 vessels have been mobilized to assist the search.