Sewol rescuer suffers from stomach cancer

Kim Hong-kyung

By Kim Jae-won

Kim Hong-kyung, 59, a plumber who rescued more than 20 passengers onboard the ill-fated Sewol ferry a year ago, is now suffering from stomach cancer, according to the National Cancer Center (NCC).

Kim was diagnosed with stage-four stomach cancer in December after suffering from insomnia in the months after the disaster, said the NCC in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province.

The plumber rescued over 20 people, most of them high school students, by making a rope with curtains and fire hoses during the tragic disaster. In total there were 172 survivors from the ferry sinking.

The cancer center said that it plans to help him by discounting his medical expenses. He has borrowed 15 million won to foot the medical bill.

“We are taking a process to help Kim financially through our internal agency. People and civil groups also said they want to support him,” said a spokeswoman of the hospital.

The NCC official said that Kim has been distressed with financial problems because he was not given sufficient compensation from the government since the disaster. The government paid him only 5.3 million won for the loss of his Starex minivan earlier this month.

The government said that it will pay more compensation to him by getting an application from him. The Community Chest of Korea, a charity organization, also said that it will support him with 42 million won.

Kim was heading to Jeju on April 16 last year to get a job there. He has suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and could not forget the shouting of students crying for help on the sinking ship.

The bereaved families of the Sewol victims have yet to resolve conflicts with the government over the investigation into the disaster.

Families demand the government launch an independent committee to investigate the case while the government is pushing for appointing one of its officials to a key post in the committee.

Families of the victims have staged a demonstration at Gwanghwamun Square over the past year.