Fishing boat accidents including collisions, groundings, and sinkings occur frequently in autumn... accounting for 40%

Fishing boat accidents occur most frequently in autumn, accounting for 40% of all cases

There are anglers who cannot help themselves despite the "No Fishing" warning. Exceptions exist to the rules set by humans. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Over the past three years, fishing boat accidents in Korean waters have been found to occur most frequently in the autumn season (September to November).

According to the "Top 10 Fishing Port Safety Management Plan for Fishing Boats" received on the 21st from the Korea Coast Guard by the office of Lim Mi-ae, a member of the National Assembly from the Democratic Party of Korea and part of the National Assembly's Agriculture, Forestry, Livestock, Food, and Maritime Affairs Committee, fishing boat accidents totaled 891 cases: 299 in 2021, 289 in 2022, and 303 in 2023.

By season, autumn (September to November) recorded the highest number with 357 cases (40.1%), followed by summer (June to August) with 249 cases (27.9%), spring (March to May) with 155 cases (17.4%), and winter (December to February) with 130 cases (14.6%).

By accident type, the six major accidents with high potential for casualties?collision, grounding, flooding, fire, capsizing, and sinking?accounted for 188 cases, while simple accidents such as engine damage and entanglement with floating objects accounted for 703 cases.

Fatalities from fishing boat accidents also occurred mostly in autumn. Of the seven deaths from 2021 to 2023, six occurred in autumn fishing boat accidents. In October last year, four people died when a fishing boat capsized in Buan, Jeonbuk; in October 2022 and November 2021, one person each died in fishing boat collision accidents in Changwon, Gyeongnam, and Yeosu, Jeonnam, respectively.

A Korea Coast Guard official stated, "Fishing boat accidents have a high potential for casualties, so please strictly follow safety rules such as wearing life jackets." He added, "The Coast Guard will also strengthen safety management and take the lead in accident prevention."

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