Firefighters are still trying to put out a huge blaze on board a crippled tanker off the southern coast of China.

The fire broke out early on Sunday in the engine room of the Panamanian-registered Gaz Poem, about 38 kilometres (24 miles) east of Hong Kong.

The vessel was carrying 20,000 tons of liquefied petroleum gas, but officials said there was little chance of an explosion.

The tanker's 34-strong crew abandoned ship on Sunday after failing to bring the fire under control. There were no reports of injuries.

Beaten back

A Chinese official told Reuters news agency that firefighters could not get close to the stricken vessel because the fire was so intense.

Hong Kong television stations showed pictures of smoke billowing from the ship but no flames were visible.

Chinese and Hong Kong firefighters have been trying to extinguish the blaze, while the Hong Kong Government sent two aircraft to the area to help with the operation, the Associated Press news agency reported.

Captain Ravi Dewan of the Hong Kong Maritime Rescue Center said strong winds were keeping the flames away from the cargo area, lessening the risk of an explosion.

Crew rescued

The Gaz-Poem was en route from Hong Kong to the southern Chinese port city of Yan Tian when it caught fire.

It is not known what started the blaze.

The crew, reportedly of Spanish and Philippine origin, put to sea in lifeboats and were picked up by passing vessels, news agencies said.

The tanker's exact current location has not been reported but it is believed to be well away from the Chinese coast.

The blaze came less than a week after another tanker, carrying 77,000 metric tons of fuel oil, broke up and sank off the coast of Spain.