Danwon High School vice-principal found after suicide

Posted on : 2014-04-19 13:08 KST Modified on : 2014-04-19 13:08 KST
Vice principal reportedly overcome with grief after having been rescued from sinking ferry while many students weren’t able to escape
 after discovering him hanged from a pine tree near the gymnasium in Jindo
after discovering him hanged from a pine tree near the gymnasium in Jindo

By Jung Dae-ha, Gwangju correspondent in Jindo and Kim Ki-seong, south Gyeonggi correspondent in Ansan

The tragedy continues for Danwon High School in the city of Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, the school whose students were on the Sewol ferry when it sank near Jindo in South Jeolla Province. The school’s vice-principal Kang Min-kyu, 53, ended his own life, unable to bear feelings of guilt. Kang had been rescued from the sinking ship.

Kang’s body was discovered by a police search party at 4:05 pm on Apr. 18. Kang had hanged himself from a pine tree on a hill near a gymnasium in Jindo County, where families of the missing are gathered.

On Apr. 16, Kang had boarded the Sewol to chaperone students who were on the trip. After being rescued, he had stayed on Jindo, desperately waiting for news about the students’ return. Kang disappeared around 9:50 pm on Apr. 17, prompting police to start looking for him. He had last been seen standing nearby and watching as ten school staff, including the principal and teachers, got on their knees to apologize to the families of the missing on a raised platform in the gymnasium.

“I was the one who planned it all [the school trip], and I am keenly aware of my responsibility. When I am found, I would like my body to be cremated and the ashes scattered over the waters where the students perished,” said a two-page suicide note that was found in Kang’s pocket, according to the police.

“We have confirmed that Kang sent a text message to a friend around 1 am on Apr. 18. It appears that he ended his life immediately after that,” said a police officer on condition of anonymity.

“Kang was a kind, warm-hearted man,” said one teacher who worked with him. “He had a soft spot in his heart for the students at the school. It was extremely hard for him when he learned after his rescue that many students were still missing.”

“After Kang’s rescue, he had been moved to a different location, but that night he took a cab and went to the Jin Island Gymnasium. That shows just how strong his sense of responsibility was,” said a source at the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education on condition of anonymity.

News of Kang’s suicide sent a shockwave through teachers at the school. His coworkers emphasized how much he must have been hurting to have made such a choice. They said that they could relate to the difficulty of suffering without having a way to express the grief.

Sobbing students also shared their concern about the future of the school, now that they have lost so many precious friends and teachers.

Around 8:50 am on Apr. 16, when the ship began to sink, Kang called the school to report that something was wrong with the ship. Five minutes later, he called again to say that water was flowing in and the ship was tilting to the left. Twenty-one minutes after that, he called the principal with another urgent update, explaining that the ship’s tilt had stabilized at 15 degrees. He told the principal that the coast guard was on its way and that everyone aboard the vessel had put on life vests.

Kang, a graduate of the Kongju National University College of Education, started his teaching career in 1987, teaching morality and ethics. After being promoted to vice principal in March 2012, he worked at Yangji High School in Ansan until his move to Danwon High School on Mar. 1, 2014. He is survived by his wife and three children, a boy and two girls.

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