Fishing Boat with 11 Aboard Sinks off Yokjido, Tongyeong... 3 Dead, 1 Missing

Gyeongnam Tongyeong Maritime Police are searching for the crew members of a fishing vessel that sank near Yokjido Island.
[Photo by Tongyeong Maritime Police Station]

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At around 4:15 a.m. on the 14th, a 139-ton class twin trawl purse seine fishing vessel sank 4.6 nautical miles south of Yokjido, Tongyeong-si, Gyeongnam Province.

According to the Tongyeong Coast Guard, there were 11 people on board the vessel, including 4 Koreans, 6 Indonesians, and 1 Vietnamese.

The Tongyeong Coast Guard deployed nearby patrol vessels, the Tongyeong Rescue Team, and helicopters to the scene, and requested rescue cooperation from the fleet vessels and surrounding fishing boats.

They rescued 10 crew members, including 3 Koreans and 7 foreigners, but one person is still missing.

The rescued individuals were taken to the hospital, but the 3 Koreans who were unconscious during transport ultimately passed away.

The remaining foreign crew members receiving treatment at the hospital are reported to be in stable condition.

The Tongyeong Coast Guard is currently searching for the missing Korean crew member using 16 patrol vessels, 2 naval ships, 2 vessels from related agencies, 1 civilian ship, and 3 aircraft.

At the same time, a naval diving support ship is conducting underwater searches inside and outside the sunken vessel at a depth of about 60 meters.

The vessel had departed Dongho Port in Tongyeong-si at 5:10 p.m. the previous day to fish and was scheduled to return that day, but a report of the vessel flooding was received at around 4:12 a.m.

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