In brief
The Queen Jenuvia 2 passenger ferry, carrying 246 passengers and 21 crew members, ran aground on rocks off the south-east coast of South Korea near Jangsan Island. Although five passengers sustained minor injuries, the Coast Guard reported no risk of sinking or capsizing and has initiated evacuations to patrol boats. Prime Minister Kim Min-seok has ordered the mobilization of additional resources for the rescue operation, with plans to move the vessel ashore during high tide.
A South Korean passenger ferry carrying 246 passengers and 21 crew has run aground on rocks off the country’s south-east coast.
The Queen Jenuvia 2 is stuck on a reef and unable to move, but there is currently no risk of sinking or capsizing, according to the Coast Guard. People are currently being moved to patrol boats, it said.
The accident happened near Jangsan Island in Sinan County on Wednesday evening local time. The vessel ran aground on rocks near the uninhabited island of Jogdo.
Local media reported that five people sustained minor injuries from the impact of the grounding, but there have been no other casualties.
South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok has ordered all available vessels to be mobilised to rescue the ferry.
We have confirmed that there is currently no flooding. We are transferring passengers to patrol boats and moving them to a safe location, a Coast Guard official said, Chosun Ilbo newspaper reports.
The Coast Guard plans to move the vessel ashore at high tide.
The ferry was travelling to the port city of Mokpo after departing from the resort island of Jeju, carrying 246 passengers and 21 crew members, the Coast Guard.
The area is near the site of the sinking of the Sewol ferry in 2014 that killed more than 300 people, mostly school children heading for a school trip.
