Two Boats Capsize Off Okinawa, Killing Student and Captain

Two boats carrying 21 people, including 18 high school students, capsized Monday morning off the coast of Henoko in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan, resulting in the deaths of a 17-year-old female student and one of the boat captains, according to officials from the Japan Coast Guard.

The incident occurred around 10:10 a.m. about one kilometer east of Henoko, a coastal area designated for the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma. The students, from Doshisha International Junior and Senior High School in Kyoto Prefecture, were aboard the vessels as part of a school peace education program to observe the site. Ten students were on the larger boat, Heiwa Maru, while eight were on the smaller Fukutsu, along with three crew members. All 21 individuals were thrown into the water when the boats overturned.

Coast Guard rescuers responded quickly and pulled everyone from the sea. Four people were transported to a hospital, where the 17-year-old student, identified as Tomoka Takeishi, and 71-year-old Fukutsu captain Hajime Kanai were pronounced dead. Takeishi was wearing a life jacket at the time. Two others sustained injuries, but their conditions are not life-threatening,...