On the afternoon of March 23, the Department of Overseas Labor Management (Ministry of Home Affairs) said that the Vietnamese Labor Management Board in Japan had reported on the incident of 8 Vietnamese workers injured in Fukui prefecture, Japan.
According to information from the Vietnamese Labor Management Board in Japan (Vietnam Embassy in Japan), in the early morning of March 21, 2026, a group of 8 Vietnamese workers while fishing at sea in Fukui prefecture encountered an accident due to large waves.
Immediately after receiving the information, the Department of Overseas Labor Management directed the Vietnam Labor Management Board in Japan to urgently coordinate with local functional agencies, local authorities and the Vietnamese Association in Fukui Prefecture to grasp the situation and deploy measures to support and protect citizens in a timely manner.
According to information from the Fukui Prefectural Coast Guard, at about 2 am on March 21, the unit received a notice of an accident due to large waves in the breakwater area leading to the Mikuni lighthouse.
Immediately after that, coast guards, police and rescue forces quickly arrived at the scene, deploying search and rescue operations.
Functional forces rescued 4 workers, including 3 people sheltering at the foot of the lighthouse and 1 person was brought ashore safely.
At 9:45 am on the same day, a victim was found unconscious about 4km from the scene, taken to the emergency room by helicopter but did not survive.
Functional agencies have identified the deceased victim as Mr. Nguyen Duy Thanh (born in 1987), a specialized skilled laborer working in Osaka province.
Currently, there are still 3 missing workers including: Le Huu Nghia (born in 1994), Nguyen Hoang Phuc (born in 2006) and Tran Bao Ranh (born in 1995).
The injured worker is Le Minh Tri (23 years old) who is currently being treated at the hospital.
Currently, Japanese functional forces are still actively searching for 3 missing workers.
The Vietnamese Labor Management Board in Japan has directly contacted the rescued workers for timely support, and at the same time coordinated with relevant agencies in Japan and in the country to continue to deploy search and rescue work, verify the identities of the victims and inform families to carry out necessary procedures" - the Department of Overseas Labor Management informed.
The Department of Overseas Labor Management recommends that Vietnamese workers working and living in Japan raise their awareness of ensuring safety, do not go to sea when there are storms, avoid areas with warnings of big waves, strong winds or dangerous terrain, especially at night to prevent unfortunate accidents.
