A Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer cut a small trawler in two before dawn Tuesday in the Pacific about 40 km off Chiba Prefecture, and the boat's father-and-son crew were missing.
The two fishermen are believed to be Haruo Kichisei, 58, and his 23-year-old son, Tetsuhiro, both from Katsuura, Chiba Prefecture, according to the Japan Coast Guard's 3rd Regional Headquarters in Yokohama.
Vessels and aircraft from the MSDF and Japan Coast Guard searched for the fishermen but had not found them as of late Tuesday.
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