JINDO: All surviving crew members of a sunken South Korean ferry were in custody and under arrest yesterday, prosecutors said, as bad weather prevented the recovery of any of the more-than 100 bodies still missing.
The Sewol’s captain, Lee Joon-Seok, and 10 crew members had already been arrested on charges ranging from criminal negligence to abandoning passengers.
The remaining four were arrested late Saturday after warrants were issued, prosecutors said. The confirmed death toll from the tragedy stood Saturday at 187, with 115 unaccounted for — many bodies are believed trapped in the ferry that capsized on April 16 on a routine voyage to the southern resort island of Jeju with 476 people on board.
The ship’s captain has been sharply criticised for delaying the evacuation order until the ferry was listing so badly that escape was almost impossible. Prosecutors have raided a host of businesses affiliated with the ferry operator, the Chonghaejin Marine Company, as part of an overall probe into corrupt management.
The widening investigation has also seen travel bans put on eight current and former executives of the Korea Register of Shipping — the body responsible for issuing marine safety certificates. A looming storm and high tides put a temporary halt to operations to recover the remains of those still missing over a week after the disaster.
Despite the difficult conditions, divers made several attempts to get into the ship, but to no avail. “Divers could not go deep into the ship due to strong currents today,” a rescue team official said.
Although all hope of finding survivors has been extinguished, there is still anger and deep frustration among relatives of the missing over the pace of the recovery operation.
Frogmen have battled strong currents, poor visibility and blockages caused by floating furniture as they have tried to get inside the upturned vessel, which rests on a silty seabed. AFP
