Three people are missing after a Japanese cargo ship and a foreign tanker collided in the Seto Inland Sea off the coast of Imabari, Ehime Prefecture, at around 11:55 p.m. on Thursday.
The collision occurred near the Kurushima Strait and involved the 11,454-ton Byakko, a cargo ship owned by Prince Kaiun Co. in Kobe, and the 2,696-ton Ulsan Pioneer, a tanker registered in the Marshall Islands.
The Byakko capsized and sank about two hours and 50 minutes after the collision. Of the 12 crew members on board, nine were rescued, some by a ship that happened to be sailing nearby. The Imabari Coast Guard Office was searching for the other three crew members who remained unaccounted for as of 11 a.m. Friday.
The coast guard said the two vessels might have collided when altering course and is investigating the incident on suspicion of traffic endangerment caused by professional negligence.
On Friday, the Japan Transport Safety Board decided to dispatch three maritime accident investigators to the site of the collision.
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