On the afternoon of the 23rd, a rescue request was made from a sightseeing boat with a total of 26 passengers and crew off the coast of the Shiretoko Peninsula in Hokkaido, saying that it was "flooded", and the whereabouts are still unknown.
The Japan Coast Guard continues to search the waters around the site, seeing that it has become inoperable due to flooding.
According to the Japan Coast Guard, at around 1:15 pm on the 23rd, the bow of the boat was flooded and sinking off the coast of the Shiretoko Peninsula by radio or telephone from the sightseeing boat "* KAZU 1" (19 tons). I can't use the engine. "
Around 2 pm, the tour boat finally lost contact after telling the operating company that the bow was tilted about 30 degrees.
According to the Japan Coast Guard, there were a total of 26 passengers on the tour boat, including 24 passengers, including two children, and one captain and one deck member.
The Japan Coast Guard and the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, which received a disaster dispatch request, are searching for patrol boats and aircraft in the sea area near "Kashunino Falls" in Shari Town, but the whereabouts are unknown.
The operating company explained to the Japan Coast Guard that they all wore life jackets.
According to the operating company "Shiretoko Tour Boat", the sightseeing boat was scheduled to leave the port of Utoro, Shari-cho at 10 am on the 23rd, turn around at Cape Shiretoko at the tip of the Shiretoko Peninsula, and return to the port of Utoro at 1 pm. That is.
According to the Meteorological Observatory, the height of the waves in the sea area around the site was 3 meters at that time, and warnings of strong winds and waves were issued.
The Japan Coast Guard has decided to continue searching the sea area around the site, considering that it has become unable to navigate due to flooding.
"The engine stops and I can't navigate on my own."
According to the Japan Coast Guard, before the contact was lost, the crew said, "The engine is stopped and I cannot navigate on my own."
The Japan Coast Guard is investigating the details of the situation, assuming that something went wrong with the tour boat and it was no longer possible to maneuver the boat.
Last June Accident on a shallow water
"KAZU 1" had an accident in the shallows last June.
According to the 1st Regional Coast Guard Headquarters, "KAZU 1" landed on the shallows immediately after leaving the Utoro fishing port in Shari Town on June 11, last year.
There were a total of 23 passengers on the tour boat, including 21 passengers including 2 children and 2 crew members, but there were no injuries and they left the shallows and returned to the port on their own.
In this accident, a 42-year-old captain of a sightseeing boat was sent documents on suspicion of the danger of negligence in business.
Fishermen "If you request cooperation, we will go too"
At Utoro Port in Shari Town, a fisherman was seen preparing for fishing after 4 o'clock on the 24th.
Among them, a fisherman in his thirties said, "I heard that there may be a request for cooperation in the search. If there is a request, we will go. Everyone is searching overnight, so if there is something we can cooperate with. I want to help. "
* "1" is a Roman numeral.