BEIJING, May 17 (Reuters) - China defended its handling of a deadly sea collision that has drawn ire from South Korea, saying on Thursday that it acted swiftly and both ships were to blame even as rescue searches and accident inquiries continue.

Seven South Koreans, eight Myanmarese and an Indonesian disappeared after the South Korean Golden Rose and a Chinese freighter, the Jinsheng, collided on May 12 in fog in the Yellow Sea off China's coast.

Relatives of the missing South Korean sailors have said a slow Chinese reaction may have cost lives.

Liu Gongchen, executive director of China's Maritime Search and Rescue Centre, told reporters in Beijing that his nation had not been tardy and was doing all it could.

"The Chinese government is a responsible one," Liu said. "As long as there's 1 percent chance the missing sailors are still alive, we'll make 100 percent effort."

The collision happened at 3 a.m., but the Chinese ship did not notify a coastal rescue office for more than eight hours, after it had moved on, according to Liu.

Anger has been mounting in South Korea amid reports in local media that the Chinese vessel fled the scene of the accident.

Chinese maritime officials left some confusion about where they saw responsibility, blaming both ships but then saying that more investigation was needed before conclusions could be made.

"It's a certainty that both parties were to blame, because the collision happened when both vessels were moving," said Liu. "As for which bears the most blame, that awaits further inquiries."

Liu said an initial probe showed "the Jinsheng believed it was slightly damaged and so did not believe the Golden Rose was in danger".

But under questioning from South Korean reporters, he retreated to say that the investigation was incomplete and it was too early to draw firm conclusions. The inquiry would be fair and its findings would be quickly released to Seoul, he added.

South Korean media have criticised China for informing Seoul's embassy in Beijing only late in the evening. But Liu said China had notified South Korean rescue authorities of the collision within minutes of the news reaching Beijing. An agreement between the two countries stipulated that the South Korean maritime police service was the office to be notified, he added.

Hundreds of ships, including special search and rescue craft and two South Korean vessels, had been mobilised for the search, Chinese officials said. Myanmar and Indonesia were also notified of the accident, they added.

Searchers have found two of the South Korean ship's three reported life boats. With water temperatures of about 10 Celsius in the area, people can usually survive floating in such seas for between three and six hours, a Chinese rescue official said.

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