TOKYO, Sept 2, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – Japan’s coastguard said Wednesday it was
searching for a cargo ship with 43 people on board after receiving a distress
call from the East China Sea during a typhoon.
An alarm signal was received in the early hours from a vessel around 185
kilometres (110 miles) west of Japan’s Amami Oshima island, the coastguard
said.
It said it believed the call for help had been sent by a ship called
Gulf Livestock 1, on its way to the Chinese port of Tangshan from Napier in
New Zealand.
Four coastguard vessels and several planes were involved in the search-
and-rescue operation.
The coastguard said it had not detected any additional signals.
The distress call came as strong winds and heavy rain lashed the area
overnight with the passage of Typhoon Maysak.
The crew reportedly includes 39 Filipinos, two New Zealanders, an
Australian and a Singaporean.