NAHA, Okinawa Pref. (Kyodo) Two Taiwanese sailors are missing after their fishing boat collided with another vessel and capsized off the disputed Senkaku Islands early Friday morning, a local branch of the Japan Coast Guard said.
Thirteen crew members were on board the Taiwanese boat when it was involved in the collision about 36 km west of the islands at around 2:05 a.m., according to the coast guard. The overturned vessel was reportedly still on the surface.
Eleven crew members were rescued by another Taiwanese fishing boat, but the captain and chief engineer are missing, it said.
Japanese and Taiwanese rescue authorities are now searching for the missing two.
The coast guard has yet to identify the other ship involved in the collision, but one of the rescued crew was quoted as saying it was a large vessel.