Japanese shipping executive arrested over 2022 tour boat tragedy
Authorities in Japan placed an executive of a local tour boat operating company under arrest earlier this week in connection with a vessel sinking incident that occurred off Hokkaido over two years prior.
Seiichi Katsurada, President of tour company Shiretoko Pleasure Cruiser, faces multiple charges of professional negligence resulting in death after an investigation revealed his culpability in the loss of the tour boat Kazu I on April 23, 2022.
Earlier this year, lawyers representing the families of 14 deceased victims filed a civil suit with the Sapporo District Court against Katsurada and the operating company. The suit was filed with the aim of seeking damages and compensation totalling approximately JPY1.5 billion (US$9.3 million).
On the day of the incident, Kazu I was operating off Hokkaido's Shiretoko Peninsula with 26 people on board when its crew sent out a distress call reporting water ingress due to rough sea conditions.
Another radio message sent by the crew around two hours later stated that the vessel had listed by over 30 degrees. All contact with the vessel was lost shortly afterwards.
The subsequent search and rescue operation led to the recovery of 14 bodies, all confirmed to be those of passengers on Kazu I. One deceased individual was reportedly found by the crew of a Russian patrol boat just off Russian-held Kunashiri Island east of Shiretoko. The vessel itself was found six days after it sank, its wreckage being located at a depth of 120 metres.
A report released by the Japan Transport Safety Board in September last year attributed the sinking to a faulty bow deck hatch. The report also stated the vessel's hull and its communications equipment were not adequately maintained and that a safety management system "did not exist" as far as operator Shiretoko Pleasure Cruiser was concerned.
An earlier investigation revealed Katsurada had been appointed as Shiretoko Pleasure Cruiser's chief safety manager sometime prior to the incident despite his lacking the necessary qualifications.
A Japan Coast Guard official told reporters following Katsurada's arrest that, despite the latter being ultimately responsible for the operation of the tour boat, he had not fulfilled his duty to ensure the safety of the passengers or even the boat's crew.
