KOEI MARU

General information

Course/Position

Latest news

Chance for survival of captain and 1st officer slim

On Feb 3 the search was ongoing for the missing captain and first officer of the 'Seriyu'. There was evidence that at least one person has died. A patrol boat of the Japanese Coast Guard was receiving assistance from the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force and nearby fishing vessels. The accident site is regarded as challenging because navigation is impacted by the direction of the tidal current. Depending on the flow of the current navigation shifts from one side to the other in the strait. The two vessels were near the western entrance to the Kurushina Strait at the time of the collision. The 'Seiryu' had sailed from Tsukumi Port, and after a stop in Hiroshima was approaching the strait on its route to Fukuyama Port. The Coast Guard believed that the 'Koei Maru' was emerging from the strait en route from Osaka. The last AIS report indicated the 'Seiryu' was sailing at approximately 10 knots when it was struck by the bow of the 'Koei Maru' and soon ended bottom up, before sinking. A special rescue team was on the scene and they were also conducting a submersible survey inside the sunken ship. So far, they have not found any signs of the two missing officers from the vessel. There was significant damage to the bow of the 'Koei Maru'. The Japan Coast Guard permitted the vessel to proceed to Imabari in the morning. Report with videos: https://maritime-executive.com/article/video-japanese-cargo-ship-capsizes-and-sinks-after-collision

Two missing after collision off Imabari

The 'Koei Maru' was in collision with the cargo m/v 'Seiryu', which was loaded with 2,200 tons of limestone en route the port city of Tsukumi (Oita) to Kasaoka (Okayama). on Feb 2, 2023, at 7.35 p.m. LT in the Seto Inland Sea in the vicinity of the narro Kurushim Strait off Imabari in the Ehime Prefecture. The 'Seiryu' capsized and sank at around 9 p.m., and three of its five crew members were pulled out of the water with one of them later transported to hospital to be treated for hypothermia. Rescuers of the Imabari Coast Guard were searching the two missing crew members, one of whom was the captain. No injuries have been reported among the four crew members of the 'Koei Maru', which had suffered severe biw damage and was berthed in Imabari as of Feb 3. Report with photo: https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20230203/p2g/00m/0na/012000c https://portalmie.com/atualidade/2023/02/choque-entre-dois-navios-cargueiros-um-afundou-e-ha-desaparecidos/