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South Korean ferry passengers told to stay put after captain abandoned ship Captain of South Korean ferry and two crew members arrested
(about 2 hours later)
JINDO, South Korea — As a stricken South Korean ferry began to dangerously tilt, a crew member with a walkie-talkie told passengers to stay put. He repeated the announcement several times over the next 50 minutes, even as objects inside the vessel were “rolling all over.” JINDO, South Korea — The captain of a stricken ferry was arrested early Saturday as prosecutors said that he and other crew members might have exacerbated one of South Korea’s worst maritime disasters, the semi-official Yonhap news agency said.
Within minutes of his last announcement, water started to fill up inside the ferry, the crew member, Kang Hye-sung, 31, said Friday. The arrest of the captain, Lee Joon-seok, and two other crew members calls new attention to the role of possible human error in the disaster — particularly the decision to order passengers to stay put even as the vessel began to dangerously list.
“It was so hectic in the ship that I couldn’t even think to make any judgment,” Kang said. Photographs have emerged that purportedly show the captain leaving the vessel — when it was tilted, but before it went belly-up — with the help of rescue workers. According to Yonhap, Lee, 68, faces counts including negligence and violation of maritime law, stemming from his abandonment of the ship at a time when most passengers were still aboard.
The timeline provided by Kang, currently hospitalized with lung injuries, coupled with reported accounts from other survivors, suggests that actions of crew members may have exacerbated one of South Korea’s worst maritime tragedies. Survivors say many passengers who heeded the announcements could still be trapped in the ferry, submerged and upside-down since Wednesday in the Yellow Sea. “Charges against Lee include not making efforts to safely evacuate passengers and eventually causing their death,” said Lee Bong-chang, a senior prosecutor, according to Yonhap.
At the time when Kang was delivering his messages, the Sewol had already been notified by a maritime center operator to potentially prepare passengers to abandon ship. The captain, though, has been just one of the many targets for criticism in the three days since the 6,825-ton ferry, the Sewol, capsized in the Yellow Sea. With nearly 300 still missing, swarms of emergency workers and divers have failed to make headway in the rescue operation, unable to enter submerged areas of the vessel where passengers are likely still trapped. Meanwhile, South Korean officials have repeatedly botched their count of the number missing and rescued.
South Korean news agency Yonhap reported that the captain of the ferry, 68-year-old Lee Joon-seok, was arrested early Saturday. The investigation into the disaster has focused on the ferry’s sharp turn before it started listing, and on whether a quicker evacuation order by the captain could have saved lives. Investigators also were determining whether the captain had abandoned the ship. Friday, officials said 174 of 475 aboard had been rescued — not 179 as previously stated — in the latest but hardly the most drastic revision. So far, 28 passengers have been confirmed dead. The others remain unaccounted for.
Yonhap said two crew members were also arrested. Compounding the tragedy, one of the initial survivors committed suicide, police said Friday, retreating to a hill and hanging himself not far from a gymnasium where relatives of missing passengers are staying. The man had been a vice principal at Danwon High School, which had 325 students aboard the ferry heading on a four-day school trip.
Three days into the search and rescue operation complicated by rough currents, teams of divers are still having difficulty entering the submerged vessel and have yet to pry their way into any chambers with passengers. As of Friday night, 28 people were confirmed dead and 268 others were unaccounted for. No survivors have been pulled from the ferry since Wednesday. South Korean media said officers found a note in the vice principal’s wallet in which he agonized about his guilt.
Compounding the tragedy, one of the initial survivors committed suicide, South Korean media reported Friday, retreating to a hill and hanging himself not far from a gymnasium where relatives of missing passengers are staying. The man had been a vice principal at Danwon High School, which had 325 students aboard the ferry heading on a four-day school trip. South Korean media, citing police officials, said the vice principal was in agony about the accident and felt guilt about surviving. “It’s too much for me to go on living alone while not knowing whether 200 [students] are dead or alive,” the letter read. “I take all the responsibility. I’m the one who initiated the school trip. Throw my ash at the accident site.”
South Korea’s Joongang Ilbo, a major daily, reported Friday that the ferry’s captain was rescued by a coast guard patrol ship at 9:50 a.m. At that point, Kang said separately in an interview, Kang was still repeating his announcement about staying put — some 55 minutes after the vessel issued its distress call. The cause of the accident is unclear, but investigators said at a briefing that they are looking into a sharp turn the boat made shortly before it started to list. That turn could have caused cargo to shift position. The ferry at the time was being steered by the third mate, not the captain, investigators said. Though it is not unusual for a third mate to handle a boat, the Sewol at the time was navigating through a narrow channel of islands where cautious maneuvering is required.
Kang added that did not have any contact with the captain while the ferry was in trouble and did not personally witness his whereabouts. Kang said the order to make the announcements came not from the captain but from another senior crew member who did not escape. By 8:55 a.m. on the day of the disaster, crew members already knew they were in trouble, according to a transcript of radio communications made with a maritime operator in Jeju.
But in an accident in which more than three-fifths of the passengers are dead or missing, 20 of 29 crew members are still alive, the Joongang Ilbo said. Five minutes later, according to the transcript, provided by South Korea’s maritime affairs ministry, the Jeju operator asked if lives had been lost or were in danger.
The Yonhap news agency speculated that Lee, the captain , could be in violation of the Seafarers’ Act, which calls for captains to take all necessary measures to prevent harm to passengers during an emergency. “It’s impossible to check,” the Sewol said. “It’s impossible to move around because the ship is listed.”
The cause of the accident is unclear, but investigators said at a briefing that they are looking into a sharp turn the boat made shortly before it started to list. That turn could have caused cargo to shift position. The ferry at the time was being steered by the third mate, not the captain, investigators said. Though it is not unusual for a third made to handle a boat, the Sewol ferry at the time was navigating through a narrow channel of islands where cautious maneuvering is required. “Roger that,” the operator responded. “Make sure to instruct the passenger to wear life vests and prepare for a possible evacuation.”
According to the Associated Press, crew members on the Sewol knew they were in trouble at 8:55 a.m., when one of them radioed a maritime services center in Jeju, the ferry’s destination.
“Our ship is in danger. It’s listing right now,” the unspecified Sewol crew member said, according to a transcript obtained by the AP.
Five minutes later, the Jeju operator asked if lives had been lost or were in danger.
“It’s impossible to check right now,” the Sewol said. “The body of the ship has tilted, and it’s impossible to move.”
“Yes, okay,” the operator responded. “Please wear life jackets and prepare as the people might have to abandon ship.
“It’s hard for people to move,” the crew member said.“It’s hard for people to move,” the crew member said.
Cha Sang-hoon, the head of Korea Hospital in Ansan, where most of the rescued students are being treated, said Friday at a briefing that most of the patients show high levels of stress, depression and anxiety. They need weeks or months of therapy, he said. But even after crew members were notified by the operator to potentially prepare passengers for evacuation, they instead told all on board to stay put. Between 9 and 9:50 a.m., a crew member with a walkie-talkie repeated the announcement several times, even as objects inside the vessel were “rolling all over.”
Within minutes of his last announcement, water started to fill up inside the ferry, the crew member, Kang Hye-sung, 31, said Friday.
“It was so hectic in the ship that I couldn’t even think to make any judgment,” said Kang, currently hospitalized with lung injuries.
Survivors say many passengers who heeded the announcements could still be trapped in the ferry, submerged and upside-down in the Yellow Sea since Wednesday.
Kang added that he did not have any contact with the captain while the ferry was in trouble and did not personally witness his whereabouts. Kang said the order to make the announcements came not from the captain but from another senior crew member who did not escape.
South Korea’s Joongang Ilbo, a major daily, reported Friday that the ferry’s captain was rescued by a coast guard patrol ship at 9:50 a.m, a point at which Kang was still repeating his announcement about staying put.
In an accident in which more than three-fifths of the passengers are dead or missing, 20 of 29 crew members are still alive, the Joongang Ilbo said.
The ferry with 475 aboard was heading from the port city of Incheon to the island of Jeju, a popular tourist attraction, when it ran into trouble about three hours from its destination, near the southwestern corner of the Korean Peninsula.The ferry with 475 aboard was heading from the port city of Incheon to the island of Jeju, a popular tourist attraction, when it ran into trouble about three hours from its destination, near the southwestern corner of the Korean Peninsula.
Since the boat capsized shortly before noon on Wednesday, scores of emergency workers have faced a series of obstacles in an operation that has sparked fury from relatives of missing passengers. Friday, rescue teams used high-pressure hoses to pump oxygen into the vessel, hoping to help any survivors breathe. But divers who managed to enter the ferry were unable to go very far and were blocked by cargo from entering a planned pathway.Since the boat capsized shortly before noon on Wednesday, scores of emergency workers have faced a series of obstacles in an operation that has sparked fury from relatives of missing passengers. Friday, rescue teams used high-pressure hoses to pump oxygen into the vessel, hoping to help any survivors breathe. But divers who managed to enter the ferry were unable to go very far and were blocked by cargo from entering a planned pathway.
Several cranes are also on site and will eventually be used to move the hull. For now, though, search officials are reluctant to take that step, fearful that such a jarring operation would pose new risks to anybody still alive inside.Several cranes are also on site and will eventually be used to move the hull. For now, though, search officials are reluctant to take that step, fearful that such a jarring operation would pose new risks to anybody still alive inside.
In recent days, several cellphone videos have emerged showing scenes inside the ship while it was still listing but not yet submerged. In one, teenagers could be seen wearing lifejackets while crouched inside little cubbyholes normally used as storage areas for belongings.In recent days, several cellphone videos have emerged showing scenes inside the ship while it was still listing but not yet submerged. In one, teenagers could be seen wearing lifejackets while crouched inside little cubbyholes normally used as storage areas for belongings.
Harlan reported from Minamisanriku, Japan.Harlan reported from Minamisanriku, Japan.