Four people were found early Sunday morning in a tourist boat sinking in northern Japan on Saturday, but their condition is still unknown and 22 people are still missing.
The four men, who were found after 5:00 a.m. Japanese time (8:00 p.m. Saturday night), are being “taken for medical treatment,” a Coast Guard spokesman told AFP, which could not immediately provide further details in the report.
Three of them were rescued from the sea and a fourth was found in a rocky area on the coast, according to Japanese public television NHK. According to the same source everyone was unconscious.
Despite the bad weather forecast, “Cash 1”, its name, set out Saturday morning to sail through a part of the Shiratoko Peninsula, a protected natural area northeast of the Great North Island. Japanese from Hokkaido.
The boat crew sent out an emergency call in the afternoon that the boat had sunk when it was tilted 30 degrees.
Research continues
The Coast Guard arrived at the scene just three hours later, and an intensive search has been underway ever since. Police, Japan Defense Forces (SDF) and local fishermen are also involved in maritime and air operations.
The Kazu 1 carried 24 passengers, including two crew and two children. He traveled on icy and bitter water. The daytime water temperature in the area is only two or three degrees Celsius.
According to Japanese media, the boat was already damaged during a cruise last June and collided in a shallow area near its home port.
dpa / oang