Eight people have been killed and two other crew members are missing after a South Korean tanker capsized off an island in Japan’s south-west region.

The Japan Coast Guard said it received a distress call from the chemical tanker Keoyoung Sun, saying it was tilting while seeking refuge from the weather near Japan’s Mutsure Island, about 1,000km from Tokyo.

The ship was completely capsized by the time rescuers arrived at the scene.

Footage on Japan’s NHK television showed the ship lying upside down, with rough seas washing over its underside.

Authorities said the ship was carrying 11 crew members and nine had been found. 

One crew member confirmed alive was from Indonesia, while the coast guard was continuing its search for two more.

Japan’s NHK television said the ship was moving from the Japanese port of Himeji to Ulsan in South Korea.

The coast guard said the captain of the ship was South Korean, and its crew included another South Korean national, a Chinese national and eight Indonesians.

Officials said the tanker was carrying 980 tonnes of acrylic acid.

No leak has been detected, and officials are studying what environmental protection measures may be needed in case there is a leak.

The US Environmental Protection Agency says acrylic acid is used in plastics, resin and coatings and can irritate the skin, eyes and mucous membranes.

No other details, including how the ship capsized, were immediately known.

AP