A Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) submarine collided with a private merchant ship south of Japan's Kochi prefecture on Monday morning, causing at least three submarine crew members to be injured, MSDF press service reported. p>
Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato confirmed that a Japanese Shoryu-class submarine collided with a private ship off the coast of Ashizurimisaki, Kochi Prefecture, shortly before 11 a.m.
He announced that the Japanese government has set up a coordination office at the Crisis Management Center of the Prime Minister's Office in response to this news and is in the process of gathering information.
No casualties were reported on the merchant ship, but a government official said the ship told the Japanese Coast Guard that it did not feel any contact with the submarine and did not notice any damage to its hull.
A Shoryu-class submarine is a diesel-electric attack submarine. The first boat in its class entered service with the Japan Self-Defense Forces in 2009.
