High School Student's Struggle Holding onto Buoy for 7 Hours after Falling into Han River

Fisherman Rescued Returning from Eel Fishing
Complained of Hypothermia, No Threat to Life

A high school student who fell into the Han River fought for survival all night holding onto a buoy and was rescued by a fisherman returning from early morning fishing.

According to Yonhap News on the 16th, around 5 a.m. that day, Kim Hong-seok (65), who was returning after eel fishing downstream of the Han River in Deogyang-gu, Goyang City, discovered high school student A holding onto a styrofoam buoy floating in the water.

Fisherman Kim Hong-seok [Photo by Yonhap News]

Kim urgently rescued A, but A showed symptoms of hypothermia and was exhausted. Kim moved A to a barge, a resting place for fishermen, changed his clothes to raise his body temperature, lit a stove, and cooked two packs of ramen for him.

Later, Kim contacted the police station and handed A over to the police and fire authorities around 6:30 a.m. A complained of hypothermia but was reported to be in no life-threatening condition.

A reportedly fell into the Han River near Gayang Bridge around 10 p.m. on the 15th and drifted about 1.5 km, holding onto a styrofoam buoy set by fishermen while waiting to be rescued.

Police received a report around midnight that "someone fell into the water" and searched the area but were unable to find A.

Kim is a fisherman of the Haengju Fishing Cooperative in Goyang City and is active as a member of the Haengju Rescue Team of the Korea Maritime Rescue Association.

He said, "I often found dead bodies before, but this is the first time I rescued a living student. It was a huge relief that he survived by holding onto the buoy for such a long time, and it was very heartbreaking."

The police are investigating the exact circumstances, including why A fell into the Han River.

According to the Han River Police Unit under the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, the number of dispatches for rescue and search operations last year was 3,647, averaging 10 cases per day. During this period, 44 precious lives were saved, and 112 bodies were recovered. Over the past five years (2018?2022), a total of 384 precious lives have been rescued.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.