Search Underway After Location Signal Lost, Presumed 'Sinking'
Phone Connected on the Morning of the 25th... 'No Issues' Confirmed
The location signal of a fishing vessel carrying 12 crew members went out and contact was lost in the waters off Jeju, prompting the Coast Guard to urgently begin a search. However, it was confirmed after 10 hours that the vessel was safely navigating.
According to the Jeju Regional Coast Guard on the 25th, the 46-ton Jindo-registered trap fishing vessel A, which was presumed to have sunk after its location signal was lost the previous night in the waters off Jeju, was found to be navigating normally. At around 9:08 a.m. that day, a phone connection was made with the Mokpo Vessel Safety Operation Center, confirming that vessel A was sailing 244 km southwest of Chagwido, Jeju, and that the health condition of the crew members was not problematic.
Earlier, at around 11:16 p.m. the previous day, the location signal of vessel A was lost 110 km west of Chagwido, Jeju, and there was no response to multiple calls afterward.
According to the system, there were 7 Koreans and 5 foreigners on board, and since contact was not made until the morning, the Coast Guard presumed the vessel had sunk and dispatched eight patrol ships and four helicopters to conduct a search.
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo also urgently instructed the Coast Guard, Ministry of the Interior and Safety, Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, and other related agencies to do their utmost in rescuing lives. Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min also said that day, "Please mobilize all available resources to fully focus on searching for and rescuing the fishing vessel."
A Coast Guard official stated, "Fishing vessels are required to report their location at least once a day, and vessel A reported its location around 11 a.m. the previous day, so it did not fail to report its location. We currently believe the signal was lost because it was in a remote sea area. Since no violations have been identified, we do not plan to investigate the circumstances separately."
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