3 missing after Japanese ship collides with foreign vessel

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ANKARA (AA) – At least three persons are missing after a Japanese ship and a foreign vessel collided in Seto Inland Sea, along the western coast of Japan.

Japanese Coast Guard officials said the incident occurred at around 11.55 p.m. on Thursday (1455GMT). The Japanese ship sank nearly three hours later.

The incident involved 11,454-ton Japanese ship Byakko and a 2,696-ton Marshall Islands-registered chemical tanker the Ulsan Pioneer which hit each other off Ehime province, local media reported.

The Seto Inland Sea, the place of the incident, serves as a waterway connecting the Pacific Ocean to the Sea of Japan.

The Japanese ship had 12 crew of whom three are missing.

The Ulsan Pioneer chemical tanker is also damaged but remains above the water with 13 crew members aboard, including eight from South Korea and five from Myanmar. No serious injuries are reported.

The Japanese ship was carrying auto parts while the chemical tanker left a Chinese port on Tuesday and was scheduled to arrive at Osaka port in Japan today.

The latest collision comes just two days after three Japanese fishermen were killed after their boat collided with a Russian vessel in the Sea of Okhotsk on Wednesday.