TOKYO, Dec. 14 (Xinhua) -- A man died and eight others were still missing after a fishing boat overturned early Wednesday off the coast of western Japan.
Japan's coast guard received an emergency call at around 5:20 a.m. local time Wednesday morning that a fishing boat had capsized in the Sea of Japan off the city of Matsue in Shimane prefecture.
The 76-ton fishing boat was being towed by another boat due to an engine problem when the accident happened, according to local reports.
The weather was bad in the area, with strong wind and big waves.
One of the crew members was rescued but announced dead later in hospital, while eight others are still unaccounted for, including a 21-year-old Indonesian and seven Japanese.
The ship, with a history of some 30 years, belongs to a fisheries cooperative from neighboring Tottori Prefecture.
The Japan Coast Guard has deployed patrol ships and helicopters to search for the missing crew members.
Japan's transport ministry said that it will dispatch three investigators to the site to look into the accident.
