One of the 11 crew members is still missing, and the Japan Coast Guard is continuing its search. - PHOTO: REUTERS
SEOUL (The South Korea Herald/ANN): Moments before his ship capsized in rough seas off Japan’s west coast on March 20, the captain of a South Korean chemical tanker sent a message to his wife.
“I love you, darling,” the message read. The captain, who was in his 60s, was among the nine crew members later found dead out of the ship’s crew of 11, with one still missing.
The captain’s wife, speaking at Keoyoung Shipping’s headquarters in Busan on March 21, said she received the message from her husband at around 7.30am local time (6.30am Singapore time) on March 20, replying with “I love you too”.
Despite him seeing the reply, however, she received no response thereafter. Two additional text messages from her went unread, one informing him of her plans to go to a dance club and another asking if everything was all right.
She added that her husband often talked about his commitment to remaining on board until the safety of all other crew members could be ensured in the case of an emergency. She believes he would have acted in the same manner during the accident.
According to the Japan Coast Guard, the South Korean-flagged tanker, the Keoyoung Sun vessel, which was bound for Ulsan, departed from a port in Japan’s Hyogo prefecture on the afternoon of March 18.
However, high waves and gusts of winds forced the vessel with two South Koreans, eight Indonesians and one Chinese aboard to anchor near Mutsure Island off Shimonoseki in Yamaguchi prefecture early on March 20. They reportedly radioed for help, notifying the coast guard that the ship was “tilting”, a Japan Coast Guard official said.
Ten crew members were recovered, but nine of them, including both South Koreans, were later confirmed dead. One Indonesian remains in a non-life-threatening condition. The Japan Coast Guard is continuing its search for the one crew member who remains missing.
According to Japan’s Kyodo news agency, the tanker was transporting 980 tons of acrylic acid, but no leaks have been reported thus far. - THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
