Japanese tour boat Kazu 1 with 24 passengers, including two children, and two crew on board went missing in high seas off northern Japan after making an emergency call in early afternoon, reporting that the ship’s bow had flooded, and it was beginning to sink and tilt. According to Japanese coast guard, the vessel got in trouble while it was traveling in rough and cold waters off the western coast of Shiretoko Peninsula in the northern island of Hokkaido on Saturday. The boat is believed to have been on a three-hour sightseeing voyage around the Shiretoko Peninsula. The 19-ton tour boat has since lost contact, according to the coast guard. According to NHK public broadcaster, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who was attending a two-day water summit in Kumamoto, has canceled his Sunday program and was set to return to Tokyo to deal with the missing boat.

Source: Ethiopian News April 23, 2022 15:20 UTC