Last night, a fishing boat captained by Nguyen Van Trung, 49, carrying 4 gillnet fishermen, was on its way to shore to shelter from the storm. Approximately 300m from the coast, the vessel encountered large waves and sank in the Binh Tien sea area.

Khanh Hoa Border Guard searches for missing victims. Photo: *Khanh Hoa Border Guard*.

Two fishermen from the boat managed to swim ashore, while the remaining three, including the captain, lost contact. The Vinh Hai Border Post of the Khanh Hoa Border Guard dispatched canoes to the accident site. They coordinated with the Binh Ba Border Post, local authorities, and other fishing boats to organize a search operation.

This afternoon, one victim was found over 500m from the scene. Authorities are currently expanding their search for the two remaining victims amidst challenging weather conditions.

According to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, Typhoon Koto's impact has resulted in strong winds of level 6-7, gusting to level 9-10, and sea waves reaching 5-7m offshore Khanh Hoa, causing extremely rough seas.

Bui Toan