Rescuers searching for survivors after tour boat Kazu 1, carrying 26 people sank off far
north-eastern Japan have found 11 bodies, one of them a child.
Efforts to find survivors had been continuing, but with little hope.
The child was found late Sunday April 24th and was later confirmed dead, the Japanese Coast Guard said on Monday. The bodies of seven men and three women had been recovered on Sunday.
The vessel, with two crew on board, was taking 24 passengers, including two children, on a scenic tour at Shiretoko National Park on the northern side of Hokkaido, Japan’s Northernmost main island. As it remained within national waters it was termed a domestic vessel and was not therefore required to have a lifeboat on board. Some of the dead bodies found on the rocks were near life-saving “floats” with the boats name on them, but with temperatures in the sea at this time of year not far above freezing, the victims’ survival time in the water would have been short.
It headed out in poor weather and sent a distress call Saturday afternoon saying that it was sinking from its bow near Kashuni Waterfall, which has a rocky coastline and a strong tide.
Shiretoko Pleasure Cruise had two accidents last year, including one that also involved the captain of the sunken boat. The Japanese Transport Ministry said that it was investigating the boat’s operator, including safety standards and the decision to conduct the tour despite rough weather on Saturday.
Shiretoko Pleasure Cruise had been instructed to improve its safety measures following the earlier accidents. In June last year one of its vessels ran aground without causing injuries, while in May a boat had collided with an object, causing three passengers to suffer minor injuries.
The bodies recovered on Sunday were found in the same area near the tip of the peninsula, about 14km north from where the boat sent a distress call. Some were plucked from the sea, and others were found where they had washed onto the rocky coast.
Local fishermen and boat operators said that the Kazu 1 was likely to have run aground after it was tossed around in high waves and damaged.
