Let's now go over to our Park Ji-won at the news center,...for further details on this
incident.
Ji-won, there was some fresh hope here in the nation this morning when it was revealed
that a series of text messages sent by survivors on the ferry arrived late last night.
But those hopes have been tamped down a bit, haven't they?
Yes, Conn-young.
At around midnight last night,... some 15 hours after the ship started listing,... the
messages said they were alive, which did raise hopes that more survivors might be found.
But, we must note, that there is a strong possibility these messages were sent earlier
than that, and were just delivered at a later time.
And the authorities are also looking into whether text messages were in fact sent by
survivors inside the boat.
We continue to look for any signs of hope in this disaster.
Another has emerged today, with talk about a possible air pocket that survivors may be
using to stay alive.
Tell us about that.
Yes, experts point out that... the vessel has not yet completely sunk, and that tip
of the ferry is still above the surface, which means there could be a giant air pocket there,...
an air pocket in which survivors could be using to stay alive.
Local media reports have been talking about a case out of Nigeria last year,... where
a fisherman survived for 60 hours underwater by using such an air pocket,... until he was
safely rescued.
So familes of survivors all hope and wish that such a miracle might unfold here in the
nation as well.
We're all of course hoping for such a miracle at this point.
Now Jiwon, with regard to the search efforts, authorities have started pumping oxygen into
the hull of the capsized ferry.
Tell us what they're trying to do.
They're trying to provide air to anyone who may be alive in the ferry.
The Coast Guard began pumping oxygen into the vessel at 12:30 this afternoon local time,
to help increase their chances of finding surviviors...
before they lift the ship off its side.
However heavy rain and gusts of wind hampered search efforts throughout the morning.
So the weather conditions are hindering efforts, and Jiwon, we have to note that there is a
lot of criticism about the lack of direction and decision-making in hours directly after
the accident.
Yes, human error is being blamed for the fact that so many people are trapped inside the
listing ship.
We've heard reports that the passengers were told to remain where they were when the ship
first encountered trouble, which runs counter to what safety experts advise people to do
in such situations.
They should have headed for open air.
Also there are reports that the captain of the ferry,... identified as 60-year-old Lee
Jun-suk ,... was one of the first to jump into a lifeboat, abandoning the sinking ship
and hundreds of passengers.
Experts say that is absolutely unacceptable,... that the captain, who should've been remained
on board, giving directions,... abandoned ship,... along with other crew, who also bailed
out early.
The captain spoke to investigators this morning and said he was truly sorry for the passengers
and the victims' families.
According to the nation's Ships Safety Act,... the captain has a responsibility to remain
on board in the event of trouble until all passengers are safely rescued.
Coast Guard officials are currently investigating Lee on charges of manslaughter.
It's also been pointed out that a ferry of this size carries 60 lifeboats on board.
This is mandated by the law.
However from the footage released of rescue operations,... only one such rescue boat was
spotted, meaning the other 59 boats had not been even been deployed.
Experts think this is all because of the lack of preparedness and training,... which all
boils down to human error.
Now...
Jiwon.
we still don't know what caused the ship to capsize.
There's speculation the ferry might have hit a submerged reef or rocks... or that it may
have made a swift turn for some reason.
What do we know about what may have happened?
The Coast Guard has released provisional* findings on what caused the ferry to sink.
They say there was an abrupt change in the ship's course and this could have caused it
to list.
Due to this,... the 180 vehicles and one-thousand tons of cargo on board to shift to one side,...
ultimately leading the ship to capsize very quickly.
This, again, is a provisional finding.
It's important to repeat that, as the investigation into what happened continues.
There are certainly a lot of questions to be answered.
Right now, we're simply hoping that search-and-rescue teams find survivors in what has turned into
one of the worst disasters South Korea has seen in a very long time.
Thank you, Ji-won for that.