Jackie Chan - A cinematographer for Jackie Chan's upcoming movie Skiptrace was killed on set after a boat carrying several crew member capsized in Hong Kong.
According to local sources, the tragic incident happened around 3 a.m. on Wednesday about 30 meters off Lantau Island.
A 15-meter long boat, which was carrying about eight crew members, is said to have capsized. About 7 of the people aboard were able to swim safely back to the shore.
Reports indicate that the sole victim of the accident is 51-year-old Chan Kwok-Hung, who was rushed to a North Lantau hospital, where doctors pronounced him dead shortly after arrival.
Reports indicate that legendary actor and stunt performer Jackie Chan was not on the boat at the time of the accident. However, he took part in the frantic rescue attempt, which failed to save Kwok-Hung, who apparently could not swim.
Kwok-Hung is well known Cinematographer and has worked in the industry for over 20 years. In 2000 and 2001, he was nominated at the prestigious Hong Kong Film Awards for Best Cinematography.
"We were together yesterday....how can I be so incompetent, not able to save you? My brother, farewell," Jackie Chan wrote on his weibo account on Wednesday.
Sources say Jackie Chan and Kwok-Hung were very close friends who have worked together on several movies in the past including Stephen Chow Sing Chi's 1996 comedy God of Cookery.
According to his publicists, the 60-year-old actor and comedian is "devastated" by Kwok-Hung's tragic death.
The Skiptrace production team also released a statement concerning Kwok-Hung passing. "Chan's unfortunate departure is a great loss to the production team as well as to Hong King cinema," the statement read.
Tenky Tin Kai-man, chairman of the Chinese Movie Production Executives Association, said Kwok-Hung passing is a great loss not just to his family, but for the entire industry. He added that the incident should serve as a catalyst for more safety measures on sets.
"We had a discussion of whether we should revamp our safety guidelines earlier this year, but this accident happened before our revamp," Tin said.
Reports say members of the movie industry have started raising money for Kwok-Hung's family. He was reportedly the sole breadwinner. Chinese authorities have opened an investigation into the accident that lead to his death.
Skiptrace is a US-China action comedy co-produced by film makers in both countries. Jackie Chan is a co-producer of the film and is set to star in it along with Chinese actress Fan Bingbing and Hollywood actor Johnny Knoxville.
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