WASHINGTON: A US Navy destroyer and a Philippine-flagged container ship collided off the coast of Japan, causing an undetermined number of injuries, the US Navy reported Friday.
The collision between the guided missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald and the ACX Crystal took place about 56 nautical miles southwest of Yokosuka, Japan at about 2:30 am Saturday (1730 GMT Friday).
The Japanese Coast Guard was on the scene and the extent of damages and injuries was being determined, the Navy said.
But it also said the Japanese were helping to evacuate one sailor by helicopter, indicating injuries serious enough to rush the person back to shore for treatment.
Video taken by NHK News showed the starboard side of the Fitzgerald just ahead of the control tower heavily damaged, and the ship had taken on water.
NHK footage meanwhile showed relatively light damage on the port bow of the ACX Crystal.
"The USS Fitzgerald suffered damage on her starboard side above and below the waterline. The collision resulted in some flooding," the Navy said.
The Navy said the Fitzgerald was still under its own power "although her propulsion was limited."
The 154-meter (505-foot) Fitzgerald is based at Yokosuka, south of Yokohama and Tokyo, and operates in the Pacific and the Sea of Japan.
The ACX Crystal is a 222-meter commercial container ship that, according to marine tracking websites, was on its way to Tokyo.
The ship carries a Philippine flag but is listed as owned by Japanese shipping giant NYK Line.
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