A cargo ship broke into two pieces after running aground in a northern Japanese port and is spilling oil into the sea, Japan's coast guard said Thursday.

All 21 Chinese and Filipino crew members were safely rescued by the coast guard, said the ship's Japanese operator, NYK Line.

The 39,910-ton wood-chip carrier Crimson Polaris went aground Wednesday while sailing inside Hachinohe Port. It managed to free itself from the seabed, but suffered a crack which widened and eventually caused the vessel to split into two early Thursday, the coast guard said.

Officials were trying to contain the oil spill. The amount of oil leaked is under investigation, NYK Line said in a statement.

The broken hull of the Panamanian-registered ship has drifted about 4 kilometers (2.4 miles) off the coast, it said.

Share:
More In Business
Biden Signing Wide-Range Executive Order on Artificial Intelligence
President Joe Biden on Monday will sign a sweeping executive order to guide the development of artificial intelligence — requiring industry to develop safety and security standards, introducing new consumer protections and giving federal agencies an extensive to-do list to oversee the rapidly progressing technology.
Load More