Indonesian Crew Member Among Missing in Sinking South Korean Fishing Trawler

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A fishing trawler with 14 crew members onboard sank in the waters off the southern coast of early on Sunday, February 9, 2025. In the tragedy, four people died and six others went missing, including one person suspected to be an Indonesian crew member.

The Yonhap news agency reported on Sunday, citing a statement from local officials, that the rescue efforts were still ongoing at the time of this report.

The 139-ton vessel carried eight South Korean crew members, three Vietnamese crew members, and three Indonesian crew members. The ship was reported missing at 1:41 a.m. local time in waters about 17 kilometers east of Habaek Island, near Yeosu, located approximately 316 kilometers south of Seoul.

Authorities had initially rescued eight crew members, but four of them, including the 66-year-old captain, were later pronounced dead.

Five of the rescued victims, including one South Korean crew member, two Vietnamese crew members, and two Indonesian crew, were found on a life raft, while the others were found floating in the water.

Two Indonesian crew members who were rescued have been taken to the Coast Guard office in Yeosu to be interviewed regarding the incident, while the Vietnamese crew members are receiving treatment at the nearest hospital after showing signs of hypothermia. 

Coast guard officials said the trawler likely capsized after tilting to the extreme left side, citing statements from the surviving Vietnamese crew.

"Excluding three people inside the ship, all 11 other crew members jumped into the sea," the authorities said at a press conference, as quoted from Yonhap news agency.

Despite bad weather, the coast guard considers it unusual for a vessel weighing more than 100 tons to capsize in 2.5-meter waves at the time of the incident. Therefore, further investigation is being conducted to determine the exact cause of the incident.

The fishing trawler was part of a group of four other fishing vessels, but it was reported to not have sent out distress signals, leading the coast guard to suspect that the sinking of the vessel occurred unexpectedly.

The vessel departed from Gamcheon Port in Busan, about 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on Saturday to fish in the waters near Heuksan Island, South Jeolla Province.

A total of 24 patrol vessels, 4 Navy ships, and 13 aircraft, as well as civilian vessels and other relevant agencies, have been deployed to search for the still missing crew members. During the morning search efforts, a fast boat owned by the coast guard capsized due to high waves, but the six crew members inside it were successfully rescued.

Source: Yonhap | Antara

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