TOKYO, Jan. 30 (Xinhua) -- A fishing boat capsized off Japan's northern prefecture of Hokkaido, leaving one crew member dead and three others missing, the Hakodate Coast Guard said Friday.
The accident occurred on Thursday, when the vessel carrying four people departed a fishing port in Setana Town at around 7:30 a.m. local time for nearshore fishing operations, local media reported. After the boat failed to return to port as scheduled, authorities were alerted and a rescue operation was launched.
At around 7:50 a.m. on Friday, rescuers found the body of a man near the port, later confirmed to be one of the crew members. The fishing boat was subsequently discovered submerged on the seabed in nearby waters, but the remaining three crew members have yet to be located.
The coast guard and other relevant agencies are expanding the search area as efforts continue to find the missing individuals. ■
