On the 19th, a patrol boat berthed at a port on Irabu Island, Okinawa Prefecture, accidentally fired eight live cannons, and the Maritime Security Department held a meeting on the 20th, and the cannons did not fire live ammunition. I clarified that the cause was that I conducted training to confirm the handling while thinking that it was.
On the 19th, the patrol boat "Shimoji" berthed at Nagayama Port on Irabu Island was trained to confirm the handling of the 20mm cannon mounted near the bow in preparation for shooting training at sea. However, eight live ammunition was accidentally fired toward the land side.
No bullets have been found so far, and no damage to injured people or surrounding facilities has been confirmed. It means that a mark was found that seems to have hit a part of the damaged cannon.
In response to this problem, the Miyakojima Coast Guard Office held a press conference on the morning of the 20th and explained the situation at that time.
According to that, after the seven crew members inspected the cannon from around 8:30 am on the 19th, put the live ammunition in the ammunition box and press the switch in the control room, and the live ammunition will be fired. It means that.
After that, the captain of the patrol boat conducted training to confirm the handling of the cannon while thinking that the live ammunition was not fired, and it seems that the cause was that the crew pressed the switch, so the Japan Coast Guard Is investigating in detail.
Takuya Fukumoto, director of the Miyakojima Coast Guard Office, said, "If I make a mistake, I will cause an unprecedented situation that will be disastrous, and I would like to express my heartfelt apology." And announced that it will stop shooting training at sea.
According to the Miyakojima Coast Guard Office, this is the first time that the Japan Coast Guard has accidentally fired a live ammunition.