A commercial Taiwanese fishing boat that last week went missing in the middle of the Pacific Ocean has been located, but there were no signs of the crew, the Suao Fishermen’s Association said on Monday.
The National Rescue Command Center was informed of the missing vessel — the Suao-registered Yong Yu Sing No. 18 — after its owner reported on Friday last week that he lost contact with the captain on Wednesday last week, association head Tsai Yuan-lung (蔡源龍) said.
The center sought assistance from US authorities and a US fixed-wing search-and-rescue aircraft found the missing boat about 606 nautical miles (1,122km) northeast of Midway Atoll on Saturday last week, Tsai said.
Photo: CNA
Observers on the plane noticed that the windows of the captain’s cabin had been smashed, raising the possibility that the cause might have also damaged the vessel’s communications equipment, he added.
The vessel appeared to be drifting, suggesting that it had lost power, he said, adding that the Taiwanese captain and his nine Indonesian crew members were missing.
When the owner lost contact with the Yong Yu Sing, it was reported to be about 527 nautical miles northeast of Midway Atoll.
No distress calls were received, the association said.
Taiwanese vessel the Chin Ching Fu No. 66 is about 80 nautical miles from the Yong Yu Sing, but prevailing storm-like conditions have prevented it from approaching, said people familiar with the local industry, who spoke on condition of anonymity, adding that the vessel would check on the crew as soon as the weather allows.
The Fisheries Agency said that four other Taiwanese vessels are in the area and willing to give assistance when sea conditions improve.
The Yong Yu Sing is listed as a 99-tonne tuna longliner on the Web site of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission, of which Taiwan is a member.
Additional reporting by Chien Hui-ju and Chiang Chih-hsiung
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
ECONOMIC BENEFITS: The imports from Belize would replace those from Honduras, whose shrimp exports have dropped 67 percent since cutting ties in 2023 Maintaining ties with Taiwan has economic benefits, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday, citing the approval of frozen whiteleg shrimp imports from Belize by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an example. The FDA on Wednesday approved the tariff-free imports from Belize after the whiteleg shrimp passed the Systematic Inspection of Imported Food, which would continue to boost mutual trade, the ministry said. Taiwan’s annual consumption of whiteleg shrimps stands at 30,000 tonnes, far exceeding domestic production, the ministry said. Taiwan used to fill the gap by importing shrimps from Honduras, but purchases slumped after Tegucigalpa severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan
The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a southwestern extension of the Sanying MRT Line from New Taipei to Bade District (八德) in Taoyuan, with a goal of starting construction by late 2026. The 4.03-kilometer extension, featuring three new stations, will run from the current terminus at Yingtao Fude Station (LB12) in New Taipei City to Dannan Station (LB14), where it will connect with Taoyuan’s Green Line, New Taipei City Metro Corp said in a statement. This extension will follow the completion of core Sanying Line, a 14.29-kilometer medium-capacity system linking Tucheng (土城), Sansia (三峽)
CARGO LOSS: About 50 containers at the stern of the ‘Ever Lunar’ cargo ship went overboard, prompting the temporary closure of the port and disrupting operations Evergreen Marine Corp, Taiwan’s largest container shipper, yesterday said that all crew members aboard the Ever Lunar (長月) were safe after dozens of containers fell overboard off the coast of Peru the previous day. The incident occurred at 9:40am on Friday as the Ever Lunar was anchored and waiting to enter the Port of Callao when it suddenly experienced severe rolling, Evergreen said in a statement. The rolling, which caused the containers to fall, might have been caused by factors including a tsunami triggered by an earthquake in Russia, poor winter sea conditions in South America or a sudden influx of waves,
RSS