Missing bodies from fishing boat recovered

Coast Guard officials recover the body of man surnamed Oh, 70, who was the captain of a capsized fishing boat involved in a collision, from the shore of Yeongheung Island off Incheon, Tuesday. / Yonhap

By Kim Bo-eun

The Coast Guard recovered two missing bodies Tuesday from a fishing boat that capsized two days earlier after a collision with a tanker in waters off the western port city of Incheon, putting the accident’s death toll at 15.

The Coast Guard found the bodies of the boat’s captain surnamed Oh, 70, and a customer surnamed Lee, 57, nearby the site of the accident after mobilizing vessels and aircraft.

The 9.77-ton fishing boat collided with a 336-ton oil tanker as they were passing a narrow channel beneath Yeongheung Bridge, causing the former to capsize, early Sunday.

Among the 22 people who were aboard the boat, seven were rescued and 13 bodies were recovered shortly after the accident occurred. The rescued have been hospitalized for treatment, but none are in a life-threatening condition.

Despite the relatively quick rescue efforts, the large number of casualties is presumed to have occurred because of the swift current and low water temperature. All of the people on board were wearing life jackets.

Meanwhile, prosecutors sought arrest warrants for the captain and a crew member of the tanker. The Coast Guard had requested the prosecution to seek the warrants a day earlier after they were detained without warrants Sunday.

The captain surnamed Jeon, 37, and deckhand surnamed Kim, 46, face charges of professional negligence resulting in death.

The Coast Guard determined that the captain had been negligent in his duties in that he spotted the fishing boat but did not slow down or change course.

The captain reportedly told authorities he did not change the tanker’s direction, thinking the fishing boat would shift its course.

The deckhand, who had been on duty that day, was found to have not been in the wheelhouse, his assigned position.

Coast Guard investigators have searched the tanker and questioned the 27-member crew.

The Incheon District Court is set to hold a hearing on issuing the warrants today.

The tanker had departed Wolmi Island, and was heading toward Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, while the fishing boat departed Yeongheung Island to catch fish in waters nearby.

The tanker apparently collided with the fishing boat from behind.

The authorities are looking into the details of the collision.

The accident gave rise to the largest number of casualties since September 2015, when another fishing boat capsized off the coast of Jeju Island, killing 15 and leaving three missing.