Strong Collision

[Anchor Lead]

The capsizing of the fishing boat resulted in many casualties even though all of its passengers were wearing life vests at the time. Those who were on deck during the collision were thrown into the icy sea, while passengers in the cabin could not escape because the collision was so powerful.

[Pkg]

The Seonchang 1 chartered fishing vessel, which has a hole in its hull from the collision, has been lifted with a large crane and moved to a barge. Survivors say that they were thrust into the ocean in the blink of an eye and had no time to feel the shock.

[Soundbite] (Survivor) : "We were pushed out without having time to feel the shock. We were swept away."

Most of the victims were found in the cabin. Eleven of the 14 passengers found in the cabin were dead. Although all of the passengers were wearing life vests at the time, they had no chance to escape when the boat capsized and ended up being trapped inside. Two of the six passengers who were drifting in the sea have also died. Only four passengers who were rescued by the crew of the tanker about 15 minutes after the collision have survived. There is a possibility that the victims died from hypothermia. A Coast Guard vessel arrived at the site of the accident 33 minutes later. The Coast Guard has decided to send the victims' bodies to the National Forensic Service to perform autopsies in order to find out the exact cause of their deaths. The capsized fishing boat weighed 9.77 tons and measured 13.3m long and 3.7m wide. The Korea Coast Guard said that the boat was not overcrowded and reported its departure in line with due procedure.