Fishing vessel swept away by the 2011 tsunami found adrift after pacific transit.
An aircraft patrolling the seas off British Columbia saw the 15m (50ft) vessel floating 170 miles from the Haida Gwaii islands off the Canadian coast according to BBC News. It is believed to be the first large item from the millions of tonnes of tsunami debris to cross the Pacific. Nobody is believed to be on board the ship, and Japanese officials said the boat was lost from Hokkaido in the north of the country and its owner was listed as missing.
The Canadian transport ministry is monitoring the vessel, registered in Hokkaido, Japan, for marine pollution or in case it turns an obstruction.
Millions of tonnes of debris were swept into the ocean following the earthquake and tsunami last year, some of it thought to find its way to the North American coastline.