Sinking of MV Sewol
2014 ferry sinking disaster in South Korea / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The ferry MV Sewol sank on the morning of April 16, 2014, en route from Incheon towards Jeju in South Korea.[16] The 6,825-ton vessel sent a distress signal from about 2.7 kilometres (1.7 mi; 1.5 nmi) north of Byeongpungdo at 08:58 KST (23:58 UTC, April 15, 2014).[17] Out of 476 passengers and crew, 304 died in the disaster, including around 250 students from Danwon High School in Ansan City.[18][19][20] Of the 172 survivors, more than half were rescued by fishing boats and other commercial vessels that arrived at the scene approximately 40 minutes before the Korea Coast Guard (KCG).[21]
Native name | 세월호 침몰 사고 |
---|---|
Date | April 16, 2014; 10 years ago (April 16, 2014) |
Time | Around 8:30 a.m. to around 10:30 a.m. (KST) |
Location | 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) off Donggeochado,[1] South Jeolla, South Korea |
Coordinates | 34°13′5″N 125°57′0″E |
Cause | Undetermined (see Causes) |
Deaths | 304 passengers and crew[2] 2 rescue divers[3] 5 emergency workers[4] |
Missing | 5[2] |
Property damage | Cargo: ₩200 billion ($180 million)[5] |
Inquest | 3 separate investigations[6] |
Suspects | Captain and 13 crew members[7] |
Charges | Homicide (4 including the captain)[8] Fleeing and abandoning ship (2) [9] Negligence (9)[9] |
Verdict | Guilty |
Convictions | Life sentence (captain) 10 years (chief engineer) 18 months−12 years (13 other crew members)[10] |
On board | 476[11][12][13] (325 Danwon High School students)[14] |
Survivors | 172[15] |
The sinking of Sewol resulted in widespread social and political reaction within South Korea. Many people criticized the actions of the ferry's captain and most of the crew.[22] Also criticized were the ferry's operator, Chonghaejin Marine, and the regulators who oversaw its operations,[23] along with the administration of President Park Geun-hye for her response to the disaster and attempts to downplay government culpability,[24] and the Korean Coast Guard for its poor handling of the disaster, and the perceived passivity of the rescue-boat crew on scene.[25] Outrage has also been expressed against the initial false reporting of the disaster by the government and South Korean media, who claimed everyone aboard had been rescued,[26][27] and against the government for prioritizing public image over the lives of its citizens in refusing help from other countries, and publicly downplaying the severity of the disaster.[28][29]
On May 15, 2014, the captain and three crew members were charged with murder, while the other eleven members of the crew were indicted for abandoning the ship.[30] As part of a government campaign to manage public sentiment over the official response to the sinking, an arrest warrant was issued for Yoo Byung-eun (described as the owner of Chonghaejin Marine), but he could not be found despite a nationwide manhunt. On July 22, 2014, police revealed that they had established that a dead man found in a field in Suncheon, roughly 290 kilometres (180 mi) south of Seoul, was Yoo.[18]