Sinking of MV Seohae

"Seohae" redirects here. For sea in East Asia, see Yellow Sea.

Sinking of MV Seohae

Wido Gyeokpo Sinking of MV Seohae (South Korea)
Date	October 10, 1993 (1993-10-10)
Location	Near Wido, Buan County, North Jeolla Province, South Korea
Deaths	292
Non-fatal injuries	70
On board	362

The South Korean ferry Seohae (Korean: 서해 페리호; Hanja: 西海페리號) sank on October 10, 1993 in the Yellow Sea near Wido, Buan County, North Jeolla Province. Of those on board, 292 of the 362 passengers and crew on board were killed. Seventy people were rescued.[1][2][3]

At the time, this sinking was the largest ferry disaster in South Korea since December 15, 1970, when 323 people on board were killed in the sinking of the ferry Namyoung (남영호).[3][4]

Vessel

Seohae was a ferry of 110 gross tons, with a maximum capacity of 221 passengers.

Sinking

At the time of the incident, "Seohae" was carrying 362 people (355 passengers and seven crew), an excess of 141, and the weather condition was harsh with winds of 10 to 14 metres per second (22 to 31 mph) and wave height of 2 to 3 metres (6.6 to 9.8 ft).[3]

Overloading was a factor in the sinking. Another was a 1 cm (0.4 in) thick rope found wrapped around both propeller shafts. The rope, left behind by fishing operations, may have made the ferry heel over onto her starboard side.[5]

Aftermath

Divers were employed to help recover the bodies of deceased victims after the vessel sank.[6]

See also

• List of South Korean ferry disasters
• Sinking of MV Sewol

References

1. "Fears rise for missing in SKorea ferry sinking". Associated Press. Apr 17, 2014.
2. "Over 280 missing after South Korean ferry capsizes". Reuters. April 16, 2014. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016.
3. [진도 여객선 침몰]21년 전 '서해 페리호' 공포 엄습 [[Progress ferry sinking] 21 years ago, the "Seohae ferry" morbid fear] (in Korean). News1 Korea. 2014-04-16.
4. 남영호 사고 326명 사망 ‘최악’… 서해 페리호 292명 숨져 [Namyoungho accident killed 326 people 'worst' ... Seohae ferry 292 people died] (in Korean). The Dong-a Ilbo. 2014-04-17.
5. Marine Debris Management, by Dong Oh-Cho, Korea Maritime Institute, undated
6. Borowiec, Steven. "A diver's pain: Living with the ghost of Sewol tragedy". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2020-02-16.