The Geumseong shipwreck leaves 2 dead and 12 missing

A 129-ton fishing vessel, known as Geumseong, capsized early this Friday in waters near the South Korean island of Jeju. So far, two deceased sailors have been found and 12 more people are still missing. The authorities are doing everything in their power, intensifying search and rescue efforts to find them since their lives are in danger. All information in this regard was provided by the South Korean Coast Guard.

The accident was reported at 4:31 am, when authorities received an emergency call from the boat. At that time, the fishing vessel was approximately 24 kilometers from Biyang Island. According to the preliminary report, the Geumseong was carrying a total of 27 crew members: 16 South Koreans and 11 Indonesians, all trapped in a critical situation in the middle of the rough waters of Jeju.

Of the 27 crew members on board, 15 managed to be rescued in the first hours of the emergency operations. However, two of them, both South Korean nationals, arrived on land in a state of cardiac syncope. Despite being immediately transferred to nearby hospitals, they were declared dead shortly after.

On the other hand, 12 people remain missing, of which 10 are South Koreans and 2 are Indonesians. The Coast Guard has indicated that all resources at its disposal are being used to locate them and, at the same time, guarantee the safety of rescuers carrying out the search mission under difficult and dangerous conditions.

A total of 27 divers from different specialized rescue teams are collaborating in this effort, who began underwater operations immediately in a desperate attempt to find the missing crew members.

Survivors have indicated that the Geumseong was in the middle of transferring fishing to another boat when it began to submerge without warning, submerging in a matter of minutes. The Coast Guard indicated that the ship is already completely sunk.

At the time of the accident, two people, including the cook, were inside the boat, while most of the crew worked on deck.

Witnesses reported that some of the sailors were not wearing life jackets at the time of the sinking, a factor that may have contributed to the severity of the incident.

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The news of the tragedy immediately mobilized the South Korean government. Presidential spokesperson Jeong Hye-jeon reported that South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was informed of the situation as soon as the disaster was confirmed.

Yoon ordered Coast Guard authorities, as well as the Ministries of Defense and Oceans and Fisheries, to deploy all available resources and personnel to carry out a rescue operation that can give hope to the families of the missing.

In addition, the president emphasized the importance of taking additional preventive measures to protect the lives of rescuers, given the nature of the weather conditions and the risk they face when carrying out these tasks in turbulent waters and under pressure.

So far, the Coast Guard has deployed 18 ships and five planes to the accident area to coordinate rescue operations and patrols in search of survivors. Joining this effort were six Navy ships, including a destroyer, a frigate and a rescue ship, as well as a P-3 maritime patrol aircraft and a Lynx helicopter from the South Korean Navy.

The Geumseong was a medium-scale fishing boat whose tasks were based on the capture of marine species such as mackerel and sardines. It had left Seogwipo port on the southern coast of Jeju shortly before noon on Thursday.

The boat, with a crew of South Korean and Indonesian citizens, was heading towards a fishing area when the disaster occurred. The Coast Guardwith the help of the rescued crew, has managed to reconstruct part of the chronology of the events, although the causes of the shipwreck remain uncertain, a reason for investigation.

The Coast Guard, in conjunction with the Navy, has implemented a large-scale search and rescue scheme, using advanced technology and maritime support to cover a larger area around the point where the shipwreck occurred.

However, weather conditions and ocean currents have made search and rescue efforts difficult, while authorities work against time to locate the missing before it is too late.