THE captain of the ferry which sank last week, drowning hundreds of schoolchildren, was accused by South Korea’s president yesterday of “an act of murder”.
South Korean President Park Geun-Hye talks with relatives of missing passengers of a sunken ferry [GETTY]Furious Park Geun-hye said skipper Lee Joon-seok’s failure to evacuate the Sewol was “unfathomable and unforgivable”.
She said those to blame would have to take “criminal and civil” responsibility for the death toll, made up mostly of teenage school pupils on a holiday trip.
Of 476 passengers and crew who set out on the trip from the South Korean port of Incheon for the island of Jeju, only 174 were rescued after the ferry capsized and sank on Wednesday.
So far 86 passengers have been confirmed dead and the rest are presumed to have drowned.
Ms Park spoke as four more crew members – two first mates, a second mate and a chief engineer – were detained on suspicion of negligence and abandoning people in need.
Lee, 69, together with a 25-year-old female mate and a 55-year-old helmsman, have already been arrested over the accident.
Relatives of the missing schoolchildren await news in a gymnasium on Jindo Island, South Korea [EPA]It was like an act of murder that cannot and should not be tolerated. Unforgivable, murderous behaviour
“It was like an act of murder that cannot and should not be tolerated. Unforgivable, murderous behaviour.”
She added: “The captain did not comply with passenger evacuation orders from the vessel traffic service, and escaped ahead of others while telling passengers to keep their seats.
“This is something that is never imaginable legally or ethically.”
The captain featured in a promotional video four years ago, championing the safety of the ferry service – if the crew were obeyed.
He said: “I believe it is safer than any other vehicle as long as they follow the instructions of our crew members.”
Divers were able to recover bodies at a faster rate yesterday, allowing them to be tested against DNA samples provided by the waiting families.
Police and doctors scoured the victims for ID and took notes on the appearance, clothing and distinguishing physical marks such as moles.
The search involved more than 200 rescue boats, 35 aircraft, 13 fishing vessels and 641 personnel, mostly coastguard and navy.
They have also used a remote-controlled underwater camera dubbed the ROV1 to explore inside the ferry. A coastguard spokesman said divers were focusing on the third and fourth decks, where cabins were located. They had also opened a route to the dining hall.
Meanwhile yesterday, a senior official in Ms Park’s security administration resigned after allegedly taking a souvenir photograph of a refuge centre for the bereaved.
Song Young-chur stepped down for his insensitive behaviour at the refuge, a gym on the island of Jindo.
One family member at the centre shouted: “We are a nervous wreck here, and this is something to commemorate for you?”
No comments:
Post a Comment