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A search and rescue team on the Danube River in Budapest

New video footage of the cruise ship Viking Sigyn ship backing up toward the site of its collision with the Hableany (Mermaid) – a sightseeing boat carrying 33 South Korean passengers and two Hungarian crew members on the Danube River in Budapest – only to continue on its path. Many are now asking whether the video provides conclusive evidence that the Viking Sigyn captain and crew were aware of the collision and contributed to the tragedy by fleeing the scene rather than actively attempting a rescue.

On June 1, the Cruise Alliance, a group of Hungarian sightseeing boat operators, released an additional video lasting seven minutes and 22 seconds, which was taken near the Margit (Margaret) Bridge on the evening of May 29 and showed the moments when the Hableany went under. While the Hableany was obscured in previous footage released by police on May 30 that was taken from the Viking Sigyn’s side, the new footage filmed by a closed-circuit camera on the eastern bank shows the situation from the Hableany’s side.

At two minutes and 24 seconds into the video, the Hableany is seen being struck from behind by the Viking Sigyn, at which point it began to sink. The entire sinking is not visible in the footage due to the sightseeing boat continuing to move forward outside of camera range; only its stern can be seen going under at the bottom right of the screen.

The notable part of the footage comes three minutes and 45 seconds in, when the Viking Sigyn, which continued moving forward immediately after the collision, can be seen disappearing outside the frame and then reversing course back toward the collision site and stopping. While the image is blurred, people can also be seen running frantically on the deck at the Viking Sigyn’s stern. The Hungarian news site Index reported that when the image was enlarged, analysis showed five to six people struggling in the water just after the accident, while the Viking Sigyn crew members could be seen running frantically and throwing two life vests. For unknown reasons, the Viking Sigyn began moving forward again at four minutes and 27 seconds into the video – less than one minute after backing up.

The video shows that despite reports to the contrary, the Viking Sigyn did not continue forward after causing the accident, but backed up and paused at the scene before moving on. The Viking Sigyn crew’s unusual behavior may indicate that they were aware of the accident but did not attempt to rescue the passengers who had been struck.

Another variable may have influenced their actions, however. The footage goes on to show another large ship approaching the piers the Viking Sigyn had passed. This could be used as a basis for arguing that the Viking Sigyn was forced to leave the scene to avoid a second collision with the second ship. A future investigation to determine the exact charges will need to confirm whether there was communication with the other vessel, and what message was exchanged if there was.

A Hungarian court issued an arrest warrant on June 1 for the Viking Sigyn’s captain, identified as “Yuri C.,” on charges of causing a large-scale maritime traffic accident. As conditions for his release, the court set bail at 15 million forints (US$51,592) and ordered the captain to remain in Budapest with a tracking device; he was ultimately kept in custody after prosecutors objected.

The captain is reportedly continuing to proclaim his innocence, insisting the collision was not deliberate. The AP reported him as arguing that he had not violated any regulations and that the accident was unavoidable because of heavy rain that limited his line of sight. Attorney Gabor Elo, who is representing the captain, also insists on his innocence.

“My client is in deep shock over having caused a major accident that resulted in many deaths and disappearances, and he has continued to ask that his condolences be shared with the victims’ family members,” Elo said. The decision on whether to allow bail is scheduled to come this week.

Meanwhile, a government joint rapid response team held a briefing at 10 am on June 2 at Margit Island, where the search and rescue squad’s camp has been set up.

“The search for the hull of the sunken Hableany appears likely to take place as early as June 3, with the boat to be raised as early as June 6,” the team said. Amid clear weather and high temperatures for the past three days in Budapest, the depth of the Danube had decreased substantially from over nine meters before to 7.6 meters as of the morning of June 2. A day earlier, an official with the Hungarian water management authorities predicted the Danube’s depth would “drop all the way to four meters around midway through the week.”

Song Soon-geun, a military officer at the South Korean Embassy in Hungary who is heading the joint rapid response team’s search and rescue squad, explained, “Because the water depth and fast currents are making diving difficult, the Hungarians have proposed raising the boat first, while we have proposed diving first [to conduct a search] due to the serious possibility of the boat and the remains being damaged or drifting further down if the vessel is raised.”

“We obtained [initial] consent after explaining that we had a lot of experience from the Sewol [ferry sinking] and professionally trained staff. Once the Hungarians give their final consent, we plan to commence diving following a meeting at 7 am on Monday,” Song added.

By Lee Jung-ae, Nam Eun-joo, and Park Yoon-kyung, staff reporters

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