In the sinking accident of a sightseeing boat off the Shiretoko Peninsula in Hokkaido, a work boat carrying a diver searching inside the ship that sank on the seabed left Abashiri Port on the evening of the 18th to head to the site.

The diver's search on board will begin on the afternoon of the 19th.

On the 23rd of last month, 14 passengers died in the accident where the tourist ship "KAZU 1" carrying 26 passengers and crew sank off the coast of the Shiretoko Peninsula, and the whereabouts of 12 people are still unknown.



To find out if anyone was left behind on a tourist boat that sank to the bottom of the sea at a depth of about 120 meters, a private salvage company diver will search for a deep sea called saturated diving.



The work ship "Transgression" carrying divers was moored at Abashiri Port near the site for preparation, but at around 4 pm on the 18th, it was pulled by a tugboat and departed for the sinking site. ..



According to the 1st Regional Coast Guard Headquarters, on the workboat, three divers will enter the pressurized tank, acclimatize themselves to cope with the water pressure of the seabed at a depth of about 120 meters, and from 1:00 pm on the 19th. , We are planning to start searching the inside of the ship by saturated diving.



We will spend about two days searching, and then proceed with the investigation for the withdrawal of the ship.



On the other hand, in the sea area around the Shiretoko Peninsula and the coastline on the land side, the Japan Coast Guard Headquarters, the Self-Defense Forces, and the police continued to search on the 18th, but as of 2:30 pm, no new clues have been found.

Schedule of future search activities

The 1st Regional Coast Guard Headquarters has clarified the schedule of future search activities by the salvage company's work vessel "Transgression".



According to this, "Kaishin" carrying a diver who can cope with the deep sea by a method called "saturation diving" departs Abashiri Port, which is moored for preparation, at 4 pm on the 18th, and the sinking site of the tourist ship Head to.



After leaving the harbor, the three divers enter a pressurized tank installed on board.



By spending about 2 hours in this tank, you will get used to the high water pressure in the deep sea.



After that, we will start working on saturated diving from 1:00 pm on the 19th.



First, the divers move from the pressurized tank to the "underwater elevator" and take about an hour and a half to descend to the seabed at a depth of about 120 meters.



Therefore, it will be from 2:30 pm on the 19th that you will actually start searching for the hull after leaving the "underwater elevator".



The detailed work process, such as whether three divers will be active in the water at the same time, is unknown, but the search activity on board is expected to be carried out for about two days until the 20th.



The divers wear special wetsuits with warm water to withstand the low water temperature of the deep sea, and work on the seabed for several hours on the 19th of the first day and about 5 hours on the 20th of the second day. It's a plan.



After finishing the day's work, we will return to the work boat again in the "underwater elevator" for about an hour and a half.



The divers will search for the missing person with the highest priority, and then conduct an investigation for the withdrawal of the hull.