Four fishermen have been confirmed dead and five remained missing yesterday after a fishing boat capsized off the coast of Taoyuan following a collision with a cargo ship on Friday, coast guard authorities said.
The four bodies have been identified as an Indonesian, two Chinese and 66-year-old Taiwanese captain Chi Wan-te (紀萬得), said officials of the Coast Guard Administration, which is handling search-and-rescue efforts.
According to the officials, the first body was discovered yesterday morning about 4.9 nautical miles (9.1km) from the site of the collision.
Photo: CNA and the Coast Guard Administration
The body was confirmed to be one of four Indonesian fishermen onboard.
At about 1pm, a second body was discovered about 6 nautical miles from Siafu Fishing Port (下福漁港).
The body was later identified as one of four Chinese fishermen onboard.
Hsinchu Coast Guard officials in charge of search-and-rescue work said two Republic of China Navy divers earlier went underwater to search for missing fishermen, but could not open the door to the cabin of the partially submerged boat.
The divers saw a leg of a fisherman through a window, the officials said.
Ocean currents made underwater rescue operations difficult, the Hsinchu officials said.
At 3:25pm, divers accessed the cabin and pulled out two more bodies, which were later identified as Chi and another Chinese crew member.
As of press time last night, the coast guard was still searching for five people.
Four Coast Guard Administration vessels were involved in a search of the area where the incident occurred, officials said. The navy’s Underwater Operations Unit also joined the effort.
The incident occurred at 1:48am on Friday when the 48-tonne fishing boat Shih Hui No. 31 — whose crew members included the Taiwanese captain, as well as four Chinese and four Indonesian workers — collided with the cargo ship Asia Cement No. 2 about 6 nautical miles northwest of Taoyuan’s Jhuwei Fishing Port (竹圍漁港).
Investigations into the cause of the collision are still under way.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source