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Tag: sinking ship

  • Sunken South Korean Ferry’s Captain Arrested

    A South Korean ferry sank off the country’s southern coast on Wednesday.

    Lee Joon-seok, who captained the Sewol during the tragic incident, was taken into police custody on Saturday along with two other crew members.

    Lee faces five separate charges, including negligence of duty and violation of maritime law.

    The 68-year-old man has four decades of experience as a ferry captain, however he was revealed to not be the boat’s main captain. According to a crew member, Lee captains the vessel at most ten days per month.

    Said Lee, “I am sorry to the people of South Korea for causing a disturbance and I bow my head in apology to the families of the victims.” He gave the statement ahead of departing the Mokpo Branch of Gwangju District Court to jail.

    Prior to his arrest, Lee came under heavy public scrutiny for his decision delay evacuation procedures. He was actually thought to have gotten off the ship well ahead of many passengers.

    “At the time, the current was very strong [and the] ocean water was cold,” said Lee “I thought that if people left the ferry without wearing a life jacket […] they would drift away and face many other difficulties.”

    Lee continues to justify his decision even as the delay is blamed for the heavy casualties suffered.

    Because of the delay in evacuation, authorities believe that many passengers were unable to escape the ship due to the steep angle of the sinking ferry.

    The prosecutors will have ten days to decide whether or not to indict Lee and the other crew members. It’s possible the prosecution may ask for an extension.

    Of the 476 people aboard the Sewol, 36 have been confirmed dead. 266 people are still missing. South Korean officials fear that many of the passengers are still trapped in the sunken vessel.

    Hundreds of military, government, and civilian divers are said to be involved in the ongoing rescue effort.

    The ferry incident is considered by many South Koreans to be one of the worst tragedies in recent history. Condolences are being sent to grieving family members from around the world.

    Meanwhile many relatives and friends of still missing passengers desperately await news.

    Image via YouTube

  • Ferry Sinks in South Korea Leaving Hundreds Missing

    A passenger ferry sank off the coast of South Korea on Wednesday morning, leaving hundreds missing and at least six people dead. The ship flipped flipped while sinking, possibly trapping hundreds of passengers inside.

    According to a report from The Korea Herald, the ferry sank off the coast of South Korea’s Jindo Island south of the country’s mainland. The incident took place just before 9 am.

    The ferry was reportedly carrying 462 passengers at the time of the incident. As many as 324 of those passengers were students from Danwon High School that had traveled to Jejudo Island as part of a school field trip.

    Six of those passengers, including a young woman, a high school student, and a ferry company worker, have died. According to the Herald, 281 of the passengers are still unaccounted for as of 1 am local time on Thursday.

    According to the Herald, South Korean President Park Geun-hye personally visited the central response center in charge of rescue operations. In a statement the President said that a thorough search of the ship will be conducted to ensure no passengers are left inside.

    The South Korean Navy, Coast Guard, Air Force, and Army all coordinated rescue efforts at the scene of the sinking. Helicopters and divers are now being used to search the ship for passengers. A U.S. Navy ship has also joined the South Korean rescue efforts, which were initially difficult due to strong currents in the area.

    A rescue worker quoted by the Herald has stated that passengers still inside the ship are “unlikely” to have survived due to a combination of cold water temperatures, the current depth of the ship, and the time that has passed since the sinking.

    The tragedy has mobilized an outpouring of grief over social media networks. The hashtag #PrayForSouthKorea is now trending worldwide on Twitter.

    Image via NDN

  • South Korean Ship Sinks Into Freezing Waters

    A South Korean passenger ferry sunk into the freezing waters off the nation’s southwest coast on Wednesday, according to CNN.

    The ferry Sewol sent out a distress signal at 9 A.M. local time. Four hundred and seventy four people were aboard when the ship began to sink. One survivor reported hearing “a loud bump” though the cause of the wreck is currently unknown. The vessel is now completely submerged.

    So far, 368 passengers have been saved.

    Sadly, South Korean authorities report that two people have been confirmed dead.

    The remaining 104 passengers are still missing.

    Rescue vessels took to the water immediately to rescue passengers who had jumped from the sinking ship.

    Three hundred and twenty of the ship’s passengers were high school students and teachers taking a trip to the island of Jeju. Fortunately, many of the students were able to jump from the ship and swim to rescue vessels. South Korean media reports that all of the students have been saved, but this has not been confirmed by authorities yet.

    One student, Lim Hyung Min, detailed the harrowing experience.

    “The water was so cold and I wanted to live. I think most of the students are now rescued. I have 20 other students with me and many of us suffered from hypothermia but now we are OK because we got blankets.”

    Since the freezing water Lim Hyung Min swam through was cold enough to cause hypothermia, time was of the essence in the rescue effort. South Korean President Park Geun-hye took swift action, ordering all available ships to assist in the rescue efforts.

    Passenger Kim Seung Mok told YTN, a South Korean affiliate to CNN, about his efforts to save fellow passengers from the disaster.

    “I stayed till the last to rescue people at the hall. But the water was coming in so fast [that] some didn’t make it out.”

    Twitter is currently swamped with updates on the ship’s status and support for the passengers and their families.

    Image via Youtube