Seoul [South Korea], November 21: South Korean officials say the Queen Jenuvia ferry carrying 267 people ran aground on a deserted island in the southwest of the country after the ferry's pilot became distracted by his mobile phone.
The passenger ferry, traveling from Jeju Island to the port of Mokpo ( South Korea ), encountered an accident at around 8 p.m. on November 19. A preliminary investigation found that the officer in charge of the ship was looking at his phone and left the autopilot mode to control the ship in an area that required manual operation. As a result, the ferry missed the right time to change course, turned towards an uninhabited island and ran aground, according to AFP on November 20.
The South Korean Coast Guard is expected to file criminal charges against the individual for negligence. Earlier, South Korean Coast Guard Commissioner Kim Yong-jin told reporters that a preliminary assessment showed that crew error may have caused the accident.
Two crew members have been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence and slow reaction in turning off the autopilot, according to Reuters.
Photos released by Yonhap news agency showed the bow of the ferry against a tree-covered shoreline and passengers waiting to be rescued wearing life jackets. All 267 passengers and crew were rescued safely.
Of those, 27 passengers were taken to hospital with minor injuries, mostly headaches and backaches. While 21 crew members remained on board, they were later brought back to Mokpo port at around 5:45 a.m. on November 20.
The office of South Korean President Lee Jae-myung said he had ordered a swift rescue operation and asked for real-time updates to be provided to the public.
The Queen Jenuvia ferry grounding incident evoked memories of the 2014 Sewol ferry disaster , where more than 300 people, mostly students, died when the ferry sank off the same area.
Source: Thanh Nieu Newspaper
