Diver still missing in New Taipei; 3 others rescued: CGA

New Taipei, Oct. 11 (CNA) The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said Saturday that a man who went missing earlier this week off New Taipei's Ruifang District remains missing, while three female divers in a separate, unrelated incident were safely rescued by a fishing vessel.

According to the CGA, a 37-year-old man surnamed Chuang (莊) went free diving with a married couple off Bitou Cape Park on Wednesday morning. The couple returned to shore around 11 a.m., but Chuang did not surface, prompting a large-scale sea and air search.

It said that despite 72 hours of rescue efforts, Chuang remains missing, adding that personnel will continue to monitor the area during regular patrols.

In a separate incident on Saturday, the Coast Guard said three female divers reported missing in waters off New Taipei's Gongliao District at 10:44 a.m. were rescued at sea by a fishing vessel at 11:42 a.m.

The three, identified by their last names Liu (劉), Yang (楊) and Lai (賴) were led into the water around 8:40 a.m. by an instructor surnamed Sung (宋), who alerted police when they did not return to the shore.

The CGA said Liu, Yang, and Lai had apparently drifted to an area near fishing nets, which they held on to, but were later rescued by a fishing vessel.

The women were unharmed and did not require medical treatment, the CGA said, adding that the boat safely brought them to Shicheng Fishing Harbor in Yilan County.