A Chinese speedboat pursued by Taiwan Coast Guard personnel for illegally entering Taiwanese waters capsized near Kinmen County on Wednesday, sending all four people on the boat into the water and killing two of them, the Coast Guard Administration said.
The unnamed Chinese vessel had been trespassing yesterday afternoon by sailing about 1 nautical mile off the coast of an islet of Kinmen, the agency said in a statement.
The Chinese vessel attempted to flee but capsized.
Photo courtesy of the Offshore Flotilla 9, Coast Guard Administration’s Kinmen-Matsu-Penghu Branch
Coast Guard personnel discovered an unnamed Chinese speedboat carrying four people in prohibited waters 1.1 nautical miles east of Beiding Island (北碇) at 1:45pm yesterday, while on duty to prevent unauthorized vessels from entering the area, the agency's Kinmen-Matsu-Penghu Branch said in a statement.
The personnel immediately requested that the boat submit to an inspection, but it resisted and capsized as it attempted to speed away.
All four people on the boat fell into the water and were rescued on the spot by Coast Guard personnel and sent to hospital.
Two were pronounced dead after efforts to resuscitate them failed, the agency said.
The other two are in stable condition and have been brought to Kinmen for further investigation by prosecutors.
The Coast Guard said the fishers' families were being contacted via official channels.
It said the case has been reported to the Kinmen prosecutors' office.
Kinmen is in the Taiwan Strait that separates China and Taiwan. From some parts of the archipelago, the southern Chinese city of Xiamen is visible to the naked eye.
Kinmen residents in recent years have reported seeing an increase in sand dredger vessels from China, which take sand from the ocean floor, as well as fishing ships, close to its coast.
At times, dozens of the ships can be seen from the island.
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