At least 10 people on a Japanese tour boat that sank have been confirmed dead, officials say

• A Japanese tour boat capsized off the coast of Japan on Saturday.
• The Coast Guard said 10 of the 26 people on board have been found dead, The Associated Press reported.

At least 10 people who were on a Japanese tour boat that sank on Saturday were found in the sea and died on Sunday, The Associated Press reported.

CBS News reported that the boat, which had 26 people including children on board, sent a distress call on Saturday that it was sinking.

Those on board included 24 passengers and two crew members. The AP, citing the Coast Guard said the 10 victims found were seven men and three women.

The coast guard said tour boat, Kazu 1 made an emergency call that said that it was starting to sink and tilt after the ship's bow flooded. It was traveling off the western coast of the Shiretoko Peninsula.

The AP reported that the Transport Ministry is investigating why the tour was conducted despite rough weather, adding that the operator, Shiretoko Pleasure Cruise, also had two accidents last year. Experts told The AP they suspect the accident was due to safety negligence.

According to CBS News, Japanese media reported that some fishing boats returned to the port because of bad weather, before noon on Saturday.

"We will thoroughly investigate what caused this situation and what kind of safety oversight was involved to allow the tour in order to prevent another accident," Transport Minister Tetsuo Saito, who visited the area Sunday, told reporters.

The AP reported that the search effort involved six patrol boats, several aircraft, and divers. Four of the victims were found near the tip of Shiretoko Peninsula and six others were found about 9 miles away from where the boat sent a distress signal.

Some of the victims had washed onto the coast, officials said.