In the last two months, eleven wooden fishing vessels have drifted ashore from the Sea of Japan on the Japanese coast. On board were 25 badly decomposed bodies. The vessels contained nets and fishing gear and are believed to have come from the Korean peninsula. A scrap of cloth secured to a mast might have been part of a North Korean flag and markings on one vessel in Hangul read, “Korean People’s Army.” It is unclear whether the boats and the bodies are related to a new fishing initiative by Kim Jong-un, or whether the boats were used in a failed attempt to defect from North Korea.
11 boats drifted to Japan in 2 months
Thanks to Phil Leon for apssing along the news.
I noticed one didn’t have a prop and another with what looked like a prop made from hard nylon or other white plastic.
Just found that odd.
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Maybe the fishing tradition was taken apart by the government decades ago so all that knowledge was lost. (?) Under powered heavy boats that might have been worked under sail by experienced crews. The engines could have originally been auxiliaries. Or the engines were just thrown in and they were pushed out there. Sad no matter what. It’s a good thing that people are concerned with traditions and knowledge here and anywhere else. You never know when that experience will come in handy or translate into hybrid skill. It’s good if it’s just recreation, curiosity or career, keeping traditions and skills
Abc news just now getting around to reporting this, but they say at the end of the article that the total number of ships total 34.
abcnews.go.com/International/mysterious-fishing-boats-carrying-dead-bodies-wash-ashore/story?id=35509063