A Panama-registered cargo ship was found sunk in waters near Tokyo on Sunday after authorities lost track of it as Typhoon Hagibis lashed Japan, the transport ministry said, while a newspaper said at least five of the 12 crew were killed.

The Yomiuri newspaper said four crew were rescued, while three crew were still missing. The crew were from Myanmar, China and Vietnam, the ministry said. The coastguard could not immediately be reached for comment.

The ship had been anchored off the coast of Kawasaki city, south of Tokyo, but contact was lost on Saturday, the ministry said.

Reporting by Chang-Ran Kim