US cruiser collides with South Korean fishing boat

A U.S. naval vessel collided with a South Korean fishing boat but no injuries were reported following the accident.

The USS Lake Champlain was taking part in joint naval exercises off the eastern coast of the Korean peninsula when the collision occurred, Yonhap news agency reported Tuesday.

The Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser hit the South Korean fishing vessel at around 11:50 a.m., local time.

South Korea's coast guard said the accident occurred about 70 miles east of Gangguhang Port, a large harbor in Yeongdeok city, in South Gyeongsang Province.

"At the time of the collision there were no injuries, the front of the fishing boat was damaged, as was a part of the U.S. naval vessel," the coast guard said.

The coast guard also said an accident at sea involving a U.S. naval boat and a Korean fishing boat was "unprecedented."

The U.S. Navy and the South Korea coast guard continue to investigate the accident.

The USS Lake Champlain measures more than 560 feet in length, significantly larger than the South Korean boat measuring about 60 to 70 feet.

The South Korean fishing boat returned to Pohang port in the evening.

The accident occurred as the Lake Champlain was conducting exercises at sea with the USS Carl Vinson, the USS Wayne E. Meyer, an Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer, and the USS Michael Murphy, the 62nd ship of the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.