South Korea Ferry First Distress Call Came From Young Boy: ‘Save Us!’
The heart break continues for families of those trapped in the disaster of the ferry that is sinking in South Korea, as revelations surfaced that the first distress call came, not from one of the crew members, but from a young, frightened boy, one of the 476 people on board.
According to a report from Reuters the call came three-short minutes after the captain, 69-year-old Lee Joon-seok made a last fateful turn that resulted in tragedy.
“Save us! We’re on a ship and I think it’s sinking,” Yonhap news agency reported him saying.
The young ferry victim, called the South Korean emergency 119 service and was transferred from the fire service and two-minutes later to the coast guard. Following the initial call, 20 other children on board started contacting emergency.
Out of the 476 passengers and crew on board the Sewol, 339 were part of a group of High School students and teachers out on a day trip from the port of Incheon to a popular honeymoon and tourist destination, the island of Jeju, which has been compared to Hawaii.
Only 174 people have been rescued so far, including the captain and other crew members, who have been arrested for negligence.
A fire official told MBC TV that the boy, whose family name was Choi, is among those missing and at this point presumed dead.
Rescuers have been working non-stop trying to find victims of the South Korea ferry disaster, while desperate parents hold vigil on the dock nearby in the hopes that their children will be found.
Many have received texts from their children telling them “I love you” and saying goodbye as all hope is being lost that rescue crews will be able to get to the young victims.
Some parents have had to identify the remains of their kids, as those working to find survivors make their way inside the South Korea ferry.
“The conditions are so bad, my heart aches,” rescue diver Bard Yoon told CNN. “We’re going in thinking there may be survivors. When we have to come back with nothing, we can’t even face the families.”
Not only the captain, but several other crew members jumped ship, when the ferry started to sink, after they had told the rest of the passengers to stay put. In South Korea, the young do not question elders’ authority and so they stayed in the sinking ship. Crew members made their first court appearance on Tuesday.
The captain apologized for his actions and said he ordered the passengers to stay in the boat for fear they would drift away and drown in the choppy waters, but that may not prevent him from facing a life sentence, according to a local newspaper, the Korea Heald.
The fact that so many students from the same school have perished in the South Korea ferry disaster, has made the tragedy even more difficult to accept for many in the Asian country, as the death toll climbed to 121 on Tuesday and some funeral services are being held by families. Only 174 people have been rescued and 181 are still missing.
[Image via ScrapeTV.com]
