TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Donggang registered fishing boat, Hunghsingyu (鴻興漁), was escorted back to Taiwan on Monday (April 8) after losing contact for five days.

The fishing boat caused alarm as it set out for sea around the same time as the 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck Hualien on Wednesday (April 3), per UDN. The family of the boat captain worried the boat may have been affected by tsunami waves, as they could not make contact with the boat.

After failed attempts to make contact, the family appealed to the Coast Guard to search for the boat's whereabouts. On Sunday (April 7), the Coast Guard spotted the vessel 45 nautical miles southwest of Maobitou.

It reported that all three individuals, including the Taiwanese boat captain and two Indonesian crew members, were safe. The Coast Guard accompanied the vessel back to Kaohsiung’s Xingda Port, where authorities checked for signs of illegal activity when the boat lost contact.

After inspecting the fishing boat and finding no signs of foul play, the boat captain surnamed Chen (陳) was permitted to arrive home on Tuesday (April 9). His first action reportedly was to eat a bowl of pork knuckle noodles.

In an interview, Chen said he lost contact with family members because he had purchased a second-hand satellite phone without the charger. He also said his engine was so noisy that he did not hear the Coast Guard's siren call. 

He later responded only when a smaller vessel approached his boat.