Japan confirms 11 deaths from missing cruise ship

At least 11 passengers on the KAZU 1 cruise ship that went missing off Japan's northern island of Hokkaido have died, Deputy Secretary-General of the Cabinet of Ministers of Japan Yoshihiko Isozaki said, Report informs.

Another 15 people are missing, and the ship itself has not yet been found.

The incident took place on Saturday, April 23. A crisis group has been formed under the office of the head of government to collect and analyze data on the state of emergency.

"To date, the bodies of 11 people have been found, and all of them have been confirmed dead," Isozaki said.

The cause of the incident has not yet been established. The crew of KAZU 1 sent a sinking alert reporting engine problems.