In the late night of the 27th, a Japanese cargo ship collided with a foreign-registered ship in the Seto Inland Sea off the coast of Ehime Prefecture, and the crew of the rescued cargo ship said, "The other's side of the ship is on the side of the ship. The bow collided, "said an interview with a Maritime Security Agency official.

At around 11:55 pm on the 27th, a cargo ship "White Tiger" operated by "Prince Kaiun" in Kobe City and a chemical ship "ULSAN PIONEER" registered in the Marshall Islands near the Kurushima Strait northwest of Imabari City, Ehime Prefecture (Urusan Pioneer) ”It was reported that about 2700 tons had collided.



The cargo ship capsized and sank approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes later.



According to the Imabari Coast Guard, of the 12 crew members of the freighter


, Mr. Yasushi Sato (66), the captain of Tsuruoka City, Yamagata Prefecture, and Mr.


Yuki Ogawa (27), the first engineer of Hokuto City, Hokkaido.


▽ The whereabouts of three second-class engineers, Takahiro Uehata (22) from Makurazaki City, Kagoshima Prefecture, are unknown.



The cargo ship has been turned over to the seabed at a depth of about 60 meters according to a survey of images using sound waves by a survey vessel.



The Japan Coast Guard's special rescue team conducted a diving search for about two hours from noon on the 28th.



In addition, it was found that the crew of the cargo ship rescued by interviewing the Japan Coast Guard officials said, "The bow of the other party collided with the side of the ship."



In the sea area of ​​the Kurushima Strait where the collision occurred, the navigation route of the ship changed depending on the direction of the tide, and according to the Japan Coast Guard, it was sailing on the left side at the time of the accident.



The Japan Coast Guard is investigating the cause of the accident and is continuing to search for three people.

We asked Mr. Kunihiro Suzuki, a maritime assistant in Matsuyama City who is familiar with the accident in the Kurushima Strait, about this accident.



Regarding the characteristics of the Kurushima Strait, Mr. Suzuki said, "The route is winding and the tide is fast. Also, the route is determined by the tide and an irregular voyage is required. It is said to be a difficult place, and there were many accidents in the past. But now there is the Kurushima Strait Maritime Traffic Center of the Japan Coast Guard, which controls the traffic of ships, and the number of accidents has decreased considerably. "



Mr. Suzuki said that the place where the collision occurred this time is off the route of the Kurushima Strait to the west, "At that time, the tide flow was relatively calm, and the tide flow had almost affected this accident. Isn't it? "



In addition, this place is a sea area with a lot of traffic, where ships entering and leaving the route of the Kurushima Strait pass each other.



Mr. Suzuki said, "Be careful when passing through such a busy sea area. Observe the rules of navigation. Avoid the other party early. Listen to the advice of the transportation center. Observe the basic rules. That's important. "