Sewol Ferry Sinking: 152 Confirmed Dead

There are still 150 people missing, with little chance of survival.

Yonhap news agency reported that as of 2:30 p.m. on April 23 (local time), South Korean authorities confirmed that 152 bodies of victims in the Sewol ferry disaster had been found.

Divers join the search for victims of the ferry sinking (Photo: Yonhap News)

The death toll from South Korea's worst maritime accident in 20 years rose sharply on April 23 and 24 after divers managed to gain access to the third and fourth floors of the ferry, where most people were believed to have been on board when the incident occurred.

With each passing hour, the hope of a miracle that would save those trapped in the sinking ferry from drowning faded. So far, apart from the 174 passengers rescued immediately after the ship tilted and capsized, not a single person has been rescued.

Rescuers said the weather in the area where the ferry sank today (April 23) was better than yesterday, with light winds and 0.5m high waves creating more favorable conditions for search operations.

In another related development, the Chosun Ilbo newspaper quoted an investigator as saying: "None of the crew members, including the captain of the Sewol ferry, were qualified to pilot the ferry." Accordingly, investigators discovered that the crew on the ferry had never undergone any safety training.

According to the regulations of Cheonghaejin Marine, the operator of the Sewol ferry, all crew members must undergo periodic drills with exercises on fire fighting, rescue, passenger evacuation, and dealing with situations where the ferry is damaged due to collision, hitting a reef or engine failure. However, the crew on the Sewol had never undergone such training.

The 6,825-ton multi-deck ferry Sewol, built in 1994 by Japan and capable of carrying up to 921 adults, 180 vehicles, and 152 containers, sank on April 16 while en route from the port city of Incheon to the resort island of Jeju.

At the time of the accident, there were 476 people on the ferry, including 325 students aged 16-17 and 15 teachers from Danwon High School in Ansan, a suburb of Seoul./.

According to VOV