Update Nov. 17, 2024, 5:42 pm                                                                                                          One fisher declared dead.  

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – One fisher was reported dead Saturday (Nov. 16) despite a Coast Guard Administration (CGA) rescue action for fishers swept off an island near Keelung on Saturday (Nov. 16).

Waves swept seven fishers off a reef near Keelung Islet, about 5 kilometers from the port of Keelung. While six were rescued unharmed, one fisher was reported to be unconscious, per UDN.

However, when a helicopter from the National Airborne Service Corps reached the unconscious individual, a man surnamed Lin (林), it was found he had already passed away, per CNA. The helicopter also found eight other individuals stuck on a reef in the same area and proceeded to airlift them to safety one by one, reports said.

All fishers involved were reportedly part of a group of 45 that had left Keelung on three ships at 5 a.m. on Saturday. Rough seas caused seven group members to be swept into the sea around 10 a.m.