2 U.S. Navy Vessels Sink; No One Hurt

Two small U.S. Navy vessels sank off the island of Okinawa in separate incidents in a fresh embarrassment for the U.S. military in Japan. The accidents involving the two light amphibious craft, in which all 21 crew members were rescued unharmed, are likely to fuel Okinawan anxiety about possible accidents involving the huge U.S. military machine on the island. Okinawa houses 75% of all U.S. military facilities in Japan. The two vessels sank as Japanese minesweepers started searching for an unexploded bomb jettisoned into Okinawan waters last week by a Marine jet. Although the bomb fell harmlessly into the sea, a controversy has flared about the way the U.S. military and Japanese authorities handled the incident.