Hundreds missing in tragic ferry sinking

Posted on : 2014-04-17 11:26 KST Modified on : 2014-04-17 11:26 KST
Cause of sinking not yet known, but questions being raised over misjudgment by ferry captain
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285-ton passenger ferry as it sinks 2.7km north of Byeongpung Island
285-ton passenger ferry as it sinks 2.7km north of Byeongpung Island

By Ahn Kwan-ok, staff reporter

288 remain missing after a passenger ferry bound for Jeju carrying 475 passengers, including 325 high school students, capsized on Apr. 16.

Most of the missing people are believed to still be trapped on the boat, while delayed rescue efforts are raising fears of additional loss of life. Accounts from rescued passengers that the evacuation was delayed because of announcements to “remain in place” also appear likely to raise questions about the response by the captain and other employees.

At approximately 8:50 am on Apr. 16, the Coast Guard received a signal from the Sewol, a 6,285-ton passenger ferry with CMC Lines, reporting that it was sinking in the waters 20 km north of Byeongpung Island, part of the township of Jodo in Jindo County, South Jeolla Province. By around noun, the ferry had capsized completely and sunk to a depth of 38 meters.

The Sewol had left Incheon Port International Passenger Terminal at around 9 pm the night before on its way to Jeju Island, a delayed departure of almost three hours.

As of the morning of Apr. 17, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters reported that of the 479 on board, 179 people have been rescued 288 are missing and 8 have died.

Among those rescued, 101 are currently in hospitals in Jindo, Mokpo and other locations. 5 of them were severely wounded.

Passengers on the ferry included 325 students and 14 teachers from Danwon High School in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, who were on a field trip to Jeju Island. This morning it was confirmed that of them only 75 students and three teachers have been rescued.

The two people confirmed dead were 22-year-old Park Ji-young, a ferry employee, and Jeong Cha-ung, a 17-year-old student at Danwon High School.

The Coast Guard currently believes the missing passengers are still on board in the Sewol’s cabins, restaurant, and stores. Divers with the Coast Guard’s special forces team were sent in to look for survivors, but were hampered by the area’s swift currents, which can reach as fast as one meter per second.

At present, the Sewol is believed to have drifted to 2.7km north of Byeongpung Island before capsizing completely.

The Sewol was built in 1994 and used by a Japanese company until 2012 when it was purchased by Cheonghaejin, the company operating it yesterday. On Mar. 15, 2013, it made its first round trip between Incheon and Jeju, and continued making that route twice a week.

The Coast Guard believes most of the passengers were trapped on the boat when a sudden leftward list left them unable to open the doors to their cabins.

This morning 555 divers were on the scene searching for survivors, 283 from the Coast Guard, 229 from the Navy and 43 from emergency crews.

But salvage efforts will have to wait until the morning of Apr. 19, when a 3,600-ton floating crane arrives from Samsung Heavy Industries’ shipyard in Geoje.

No information was released on the cause of the accident, but survivor reports of a loud banging sound at the bow just before the ferry capsized have led some to suggest the vessel may have collided with a reef in the fog. Experts have suggested that the ship might have turned quickly, causing the freight on the ship to shift and throw the ship off balance.

Many survivors also reported hearing a broadcast on the boat telling passengers to “stay in place,” leading some to suggest the evacuation could have been delayed by crew misjudgment. Passengers reported hearing a loud bang, which could have been freight shifting in the hold. 180 cars and 1,157 tons of freight were on board.

One of the rescued passengers, a 17-year-old surnamed Park, recalled, “The boat was tilting, and there were several broadcasts telling us, ‘Stay where you are.’”

“Maybe things would be different if people had gotten out faster,” he added.

Meanwhile, President Park Geun-hye responded to the first report on the accident from Office of National Security chief Kim Jang-soo by ordering a “full-scale rescue effort making maximum use of Navy and Coast Guard personnel and equipment, along with all availably nearby rescue vessels,” Blue House spokesman Min Kyung-wook said.

 Jindo County
Jindo County

 

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