(CNN) – Japan’s coast guard sent patrol boats and planes after a missing tourist boat with 26 people on board sank in the northern part of Hokkaido on Saturday, the public broadcaster NHK reported.
Authorities lost contact with the crew of the Kazu 1 after crews reported that water was running over the back of the Kazu 1 and began to sink, the NHK said. The NHK said crews said the crew were wearing life jackets and that the ship was listed at a 30-degree angle.
The plane was carrying 24 passengers and two crew members, including two children, the broadcaster said.
The management office of a cruise liner with 26 crew and passengers lost contact after it was reported to be receiving water off the Shirdoko Peninsula in Hokkaido, northern Japan.
No one was immediately available to comment to the Japan Coast Guard outside of normal business hours.
At 1:15 a.m. (12:15 a.m. ET), the Coast Guard contacted the ship and dispatched five patrol boats and two aircraft to search, the NHK said.
No one has responded to the office of the company that organizes the Kazu 1 tour. According to its homepage, the boat can carry up to 65 people. According to the travel agency, tours in the Shiretoko area typically last three hours.
The ship is expected to depart Utoro port at 10 a.m. Saturday and return to port at 1 p.m., NHK said. As the waves were high, the fishing boats in the area returned to the harbor at midnight.
The cruise ship was located off the Shirdoko Peninsula in northern Japan, and is believed to be close to Kashinu Falls, the NHK said.
