BREAKING NEWS: Tour boat with 26 people abroad sinks off Japan

Japan’s coast guard says the tour boat made an emergency distress call in the early afternoon, saying the bow of the ship had been flooded and was beginning to sink and tilt.

Japan’s coast guard says the tour boat with 26 people aboard – including two children – has been missing for more than seven hours after issuing a distress call and taking in water.

The crew also said those on board the 19-ton Kazu1 were wearing life jackets and the boat was keeling at a 30-degree angle, SkyNews reports.

The tour boat, with two crew on board, was travelling off the western coast of Shiretoko Peninsula, in the northern island of Hokkaido.

Six patrol boats and four aircraft have been dispatched to the area in the search for any survivors.

Japanese media reports said fishing boats had returned to port before noon because of bad weather.

Public broadcaster NHK said there was a warning for waves of up to three metres high.

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