In brief
A tugboat went on fire near Miyako Island in Okinawa on Friday morning, with the Miyakojima Coast Guard Office recording the incident at 8:15 a.m. local time. Six of the vessel’s crew are reported as missing or unaccounted for. The incident remains under investigation, with no further details released at this time.
A tugboat caught fire off Miyako Island in the Okinawa Prefecture of Japan on Friday morning, leaving the status of six crew members unknown. The incident occurred at about 8:15 a.m. local time, according to a Bureau of the Miyakojima coast guard, as cited by Kyodo News and re‑reported by Xinhua.
Kyodo’s account, which the Xinhua dispatch relied on, confirms that the fire broke out on the vessel operating in Miyako Bay. No reports of casualties or injuries have yet been confirmed, and the crews’ whereabouts remain unverified.
The Miyakojima Coast Guard Office said it received the report of the fire and would continue to monitor the situation, but it has not supplied further details on the crew. Sources at the coast guard have not yet confirmed whether any crew members were rescued, and the status of the six are still unknown.