Search for crew after suspected Chinese fishing boat capsizes in West Sea
Rescue workers stand on the capsized boat off Baengnyeong Island on Saturday. / Yonhap
By Kang Aa-young
The Incheon Coast Guard has been searching for more than 14 hours for missing crewmen of what is believed to be a wooden fishing boat that capsized near Baengnyeong Island near the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the West Sea.
It is not known how many were on board and whether the crew was fishing illegally in Korean waters. The boat was found in an area overfished by illegal Chinese crab-catching boats.
Most of the 12-meter boat was under water with only the bottom of the hull above water. The Coast Guard was having difficulty identifying the vessel because of bad weather.
"Considering the design, it is a Chinese fishing boat," a Coast Guard spokesman said.
Wooden boats are rarely used for coastal fishing in South Korea.
The ROK Second Fleet learned the boat was in trouble at 11:59 p.m. Saturday, and informed the Coast Guard.