A Panamanian-registered tanker ran aground on an island in Kagoshima Prefecture on Saturday but none of the crew were injured, the Japan Coast Guard said.
All 18 crew members — 17 Myanmar nationals and a Taiwanese — on the 5,404-ton Sagan were rescued by helicopter after the incident on Suwanose Island in the Tokara Island chain, the coast guard said.
The coast guard said it received an emergency call from the ship around 6:30 a.m. when it was off the coast and spotted oil spills around the hull.