Safety
Chugoku bureau orders Kasaoka Ferry to correct 19 safety failings
Sanyo Shimbun reports that the Chugoku Transport Bureau has ordered Kasaoka Ferry, under an order dated 15 October, to correct 19 breaches after its 198-ton ferry 第弐拾八大福丸 collided with a fishing boat off Kitagishima on 27 July. No one was injured. The company is to report its improvements in writing by 14 November.
Source: Sanyo Shimbun (opens in a new tab)
Sanyo Shimbun reported on 16 October 2026 that the Chugoku Transport Bureau has issued an order, dated 15 October, requiring Kasaoka Ferry to ensure the safety of its passenger service. The newspaper says the order is an administrative measure under the Maritime Transport Act.
In July, off Kitagishima in Kasaoka, Okayama, the company's ferry 第弐拾八大福丸, of 198 tons, collided with a fishing boat. The order records 19 breaches of the relevant laws and of the company's safety-management rules, including the record of the results of the ship inspection carried out at departure and the drawing up of priority safety measures. The company is to report specific improvements in writing by 14 November.
The Mizushima Coast Guard office said the collision was on the morning of 27 July. Eighteen people, crew and passengers together, were on the ferry, and one person was on the fishing boat. No one was injured. The bureau inspected the company twice, in July and August.