KAGOSHIMA — A tuna fishing boat was reported on fire off the Japanese coast on March 21, and four of its eight crew were still missing as of 2 p.m. that day.
According to the 10th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters, a U.S.-registered freighter reported the longline fishing boat 51st Yujinmaru was on fire 185 kilometers southeast of the island of Tanegashima in southwest Japan’s Kagoshima Prefecture at around 7:25 a.m. The 51st Yujinmaru is based in the city of Susaki, Kochi Prefecture, and was crewed by two Japanese and six Indonesians.
About 10 minutes after the freighter’s report, a Greek-registered LNG tanker sailing nearby rescued three Indonesians, whose lives are reportedly not in danger. Around 1:25 p.m. on the same day, an Amami Coast Guard Office patrol boat rescued another crewmember, whose nationality and condition are unknown.
(Japanese original by Keisuke Muneoka, Kagoshima Bureau)
