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10 confirmed dead after tour boat sinks
RESCUERS said yesterday that 10 people who were retrieved from the sea and the rocky coast of a northern Japanese national park had died, a day after a tour boat with 26 people aboard apparently sank in rough waters.
The search for the others was still ongoing after the boat sent a distress call on Saturday afternoon saying it was sinking. The location, near the Kashuni Waterfall, is known as a difficult place to manoeuvre boats because of its rocky coastline and strong tide.
There were two crew and 24 passengers, including two children, on the 19-ton Kazu 1 when it ran into trouble while travelling off the western coast of the Shiretoko Peninsula.
The coast guard said the 10 victims were adults, seven men and three women.
The Transport Ministry launched an investigation into the boat’s operator, Shiretoko Pleasure Cruise, which had two accidents last year. The ministry said it was looking into safety standards and the decision to conduct the tour despite rough weather on Saturday.
“We will thoroughly investigate what caused this situation and what kind of safety oversight was involved to allow the tour in order to prevent another accident,” Transport Minister Tetsuo Saito, who visited the area on Sunday, told reporters.
Following an intensive search involving six patrol boats, several aircraft and divers that went through the night, rescuers on Sunday found four people near the tip of Shiretoko Peninsula and later six more in the same area. S
Some of them were plucked from the sea, while others were washed onto the rocky coast.