Shinei-Maru

The 'Shinei Maru', with five crew members on board, has run down the recreational fishing boat 'Kousei Maru' (16-tons), with 13 people on board, off Kunizakicho on Feb 20, 2026, at 1 p.m., killing two people and injuring at least seven others. The force of the impact split the fishing boat int two, The 'Shinei Maru' had completed offloading a cargo of steel on the morning and departed Kinuura Port, enroute to Kurashiki Port. The fishing boat was for hire and took 12 passengers out at midday near Toba City for a half-day fishing excursion. It had anchored about 10-15 minutes earlier and just begun fishing, while the weather was calm and visibility was good, when the cargo ship appeared and sounded its horn in hopes of drawing attention. The ship struck the boat with sufficient force. The 12 fishermen and the captain were thrown into the water. They were wearing life jackets. Other fishing boats and the Japanese Coast Guard immediately responded. They retrieved 12 of the people, and initially, one was reported missing, but was found after about an hour. Two of the people were in cardiac arrest and rushed to a hospital, where they were pronounced dead. Five people were seriously injured, and two others suffered minor injuries. Among the injured was the captain. The two deceased were a 60-year-old and an 85-year-old man. The 'Shinei Maru' was initially held at the scene for an inspection, and allegedly the captain was not at the helm when it struck the boat. The Japan Coast Guard arrested the Second Officer Hanon Sugimoto (21), who was piloting the cargo ship at the time, on suspicion of negligence resulting in death and endangerment of traffic. The cargo ship was later directed to the port of Nagoya, where it berthed on Feb 21 for further investigations by the Japan Coast Guard and the Japan Transport Safety Board. On Feb 23 it left the port en route to Shimizu. Reports with photos and video: https://www.bairdmaritime.com/security/incidents/accidents/two-dead-after-cargo-ship-collides-with-fishing-boat-off-central-japan https://news.web.nhk/newsweb/na/na-k10015057901000 https://news.web.nhk/newsweb/na/na-k10015057041000 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/-DoiUDnWPOs