People head to a briefing held for parents of students at Doshisha International Junior and Senior High School in Kyoto Prefecture following an accident in which two boats capsized off the Henoko district of Nago in Okinawa Prefecture, resulting in the death of a student and the boat’s captain. The meeting was held at Doshisha Women’s College in Kyotanabe, Kyoto Prefecture, on March 24, 2026. (Mainichi/Kentaro Suzuki)
KYOTO — A Kyoto Prefecture school held a closed-door meeting for parents on March 24 following a fatal boating accident that occurred during a school trip to Okinawa earlier in the month, sparking questions from guardians over its responsibility.
Doshisha International Junior and Senior High School in the city of Kyotanabe held the meeting for parents of second-year students following the accident off the Henoko district of the Okinawa Prefecture city of Nago that claimed the life of a 17-year-old student and a 71-year-old skipper.
According to the school, about 150 parents attended the meeting at Doshisha Women’s College, near the school, with others joining online. The session lasted nearly four hours as parents raised questions about the accident.
Afterward, the school’s principal, Kikuo Nishida, responded to questions from reporters. He apologized, saying, “Sufficient investigations were lacking,” and said the school told parents, “We will make sure this never happens again.”
One of the parents was quoted as asking, “Why were many children put on a small boat?” Regarding the fact that no teachers were aboard the small vessel, one guardian is said to have pointed out, “There was no supervisory figure aboard, and supervisory responsibilities were abandoned.”
Nishida also told reporters that there was a period before the small boat capsized when it was traveling at high speed, which made one student feel “scared.”
The school plans to hold another briefing for parents of students in other grades on March 25.
The fatal accident occurred on March 16, involving two boats. The Fukutsu, carrying eight students and captain Hajime Kanai, capsized, and two minutes later, the Heiwamaru, carrying 10 students and two crew members, capsized in nearly the same location. Kanai and a female student who was aboard the Heiwamaru died, and 14 students were injured.
(Japanese original by Kentaro Suzuki, Uji Local Bureau, and Ryota Sukeno, Kyoto Bureau)
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