Sinking Ferry In South Korea
Sinking Ferry In South Korea
Many South Korean families have been struck by tragedy when a ferry sank on April 16th. The ferry was carrying mostly high school students, 330 to be exact. The total number of people on board at the time was 429. Currently there are still many people missing. Many of the survivors suffered various injuries and have been taken to a hospital for treatments.
The ferry was on its way to Jeju Island, a popular destination for tourists. According to the desperate messages send by its passengers before the tragedy, the boat hit something and a loud noise was heard. They also mention that the ferry started tilting immediately to a side.
A crewman that managed to survive declared on Thursday that there was a lot of chaos on board when the ferry started tilting. The captain hoped he could stabilize the ferry, but seeing it was impossible he ordered the evacuation. However the order came too late and saving all the passengers was not possible. Numerous people drowned before they could receive any help, or lost their lives due to hypothermia. The water had a very low temperature that day, only reaching 12 Celsius degrees.
Most of the students send desperate messages to their friends and family informing them of the situation, apologizing, and telling them they loved them.
The ferry, Sewol, was operated by Chonghaejin Marine Corporation and was having regular trips from Incheon to Jeju. Sewol could carry as many as 921 passengers. The ferry was brought from Japan where it was built 20 years ago. Sewol was refitted before being allowed to sail in Korea, and was able to hold over 900 people. However, at the time of sinking, the boat only held a little over 400 passengers. Sewol was built to last and had a length of almost 150 meters.
The trip was suppose to be quite a long one, having a total duration of about 13 hours. The boat fully sank and not long after, nothing was left of it. As stated by Korean officials, Sewol might have sunk due to being refitted. The boat became heavier upon reconstruction, and it is possible this contributed to the disaster. Another possibility is that the bad weather conditions affected the boat.
The incident will be thoroughly investigated as to establish the causes of why it happened and to take measures against it reoccurring in the future.
This is not the first time a Korean ferry sinks. The last serious incident happened over 20 years ago, when the boat sunk due to overcrowding. However, the Sewol disaster is the most serious one in in the past years.
The authorities hope to recover at least parts of the ferry as soon as the weather become favorable.
