UpdateWind and waves hamper search for hundreds trapped in South Korea sunken ferry
Massive search under way in South Korea to rescue passengers, many of whom are teenagers
South Korean coastguard and navy divers fought rising winds, strong waves and murky waters on Thursday as they resumed searching on Thursday for about 290 people still missing, many of them students from the same high school, following the sinking of a ferry more than 24 hours ago.
Coastguard, navy and some private divers were operating in waters at the site of the accident, about 20 kilometres off the country’s southwestern coast. Earlier, rescue teams hammered on the hull of the upturned vessel, hoping for a response from anyone trapped inside, but did not hear anything, media reports said.
Grieving family members gathered on the quay of the coastal city of Jindo, huddled in blankets against the spring cold as efforts to locate the missing went into a second day, with the official death toll standing at nine.
“I am really angry with the government,” said Kwak Hyun-ok, whose daughter who was one of 340 children and teachers from one school on the vessel. There is no meaning to life without my daughter,” Kwak told reporters.
The government said three cranes were being moved to the site of the accident and would arrive on Friday, and efforts were continuing to establish whether there were any survivors on the stricken vessel.
“We carried out underwater searches five times from midnight until early in the morning, but the strong currents and murky waters pose big obstacles,” Kang Byung-kyu, a minister for public security, told a news conference in the capital Seoul.