South Korea Ferry Sinks, Hundreds Missing

Alan Taylor
April 16, 2014
23 Photos
In Focus

Yesterday, off the coast of South Korea, a large passenger ferry named the Sewol sank in calm seas, while carrying more than 450 passengers, mostly high school students on an overnight trip to a tourist island. Officials currently confirm only 164 have been rescued, another four listed as killed, leaving approximately 300 passengers still missing. By nightfall, the Sewol had turned upside down, sinking nearly completely below the surface -- only a small part of its bow still visible. Reuters quoted one survivor as saying "The on-board announcement told people to stay put... people who stayed are trapped." As anxious relatives await word, officials have resumed rescue operations after a short pause during the darkest hours of the night.

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Passengers from a ferry sinking off South Korea's southern coast are rescued by South Korean Coast guard in the water off the southern coast near Jindo, south of Seoul, on April 16, 2014. Nearly 300 people were still missing Wednesday morning, several hours after the ferry carrying more than 450 passengers, most of them high school students, sank in cold waters off South Korea's southern coast. #

AP Photo/Yonhap

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A passenger ferry sinks off the coast of Jindo Island on April 16, 2014 in Jindo-gun, South Korea. #

Republic of Korea Coast Guard via Getty Images

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Rescue work by members of the Republic of Korea Coast Guard continues around the ferry sinking off the coast of Jindo Island on April 16, 2014 in Jindo-gun, South Korea. #

Republic of Korea Coast Guard via Getty Images

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Ferry passengers are rescued by members of the Republic of Korea Coast Guard on April 16, 2014 in Jindo-gun, South Korea. #

Republic of Korea Coast Guard via Getty Images

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South Korean coast guard officers rescue passengers from a sinking ferry off the southern coast of South Korea on April 16, 2014. #

AP Photo/South Korea Coast Guard via Yonhap

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Rescue helicopters fly over the sinking South Korean passenger ferry on April 16, 2014, off South Korea's southern coast. #

AP Photo/Yonhap

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Passengers are rescued by the Republic of Korea Coast Guard from a ferry sinking off the coast of Jindo Island on April 16, 2014. #

Republic of Korea Coast Guard via Getty Images

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Passengers are rescued by the Republic of Korea Coast Guard from a ferry sinking off the coast of Jindo Island on April 16, 2014. #

Republic of Korea Coast Guard via Getty Images

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Passengers from a ferry sinking off South Korea's southern coast are rescued by a South Korean Coast Guard helicopter on April 16, 2014. #

AP Photo/Yonhap

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Rescue work by members of the Republic of Korea Coast Guard continues around the site of ferry sinking accident off the coast of Jindo Island on April 16, 2014. #

Republic of Korea Coast Guard via Getty Images

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Passengers from a ferry sinking off South Korea's southern coast are rescued by South Korean Coast guard in the water off the southern coast near Jindo, on April 16, 2014. #

AP Photo/Yonhap

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South Korean rescue team boats and fishing boats try to rescue passengers of the ferry Sewol, sinking off South Korea's southern coast on April 16, 2014. #

AP Photo/South Korea Coast Guard via Yonhap

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The ferry Sewol sinks in the water off the southern coast near Jindo on April 16, 2014. #

AP Photo/South Korea Coast Guard via Yonhap

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The mother of a passenger who was on the sinking "Sewol" reacts as she finds her son at a gym where rescued passengers gathered in Jindo on April 16, 2014. #

Reuters/Kim Hong-Ji

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Rescued ferry passengers are escorted upon their arrival at a port in Jindo, south of Seoul, South Korea, on April 16, 2014. #

AP Photo/Yonhap, Park Chul-heung

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Relatives of passengers of a sunken ship wrapped in blankets look toward the sea at Jindo port, South Korea, on April 16, 2014. #

AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon

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South Korean rescue team boats and fishing boats try to rescue passengers of a ferry sinking off South Korea's southern coast on April 16, 2014. #

AP Photo/South Korean Navy via Yonhap

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The mother of a passenger who was on a sinking ferry reacts as she finds her son's name in the survivors list at a gym where rescued passengers gathered in Jindo on April 16, 2014. #

Reuters/Kim Hong-Ji

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A relative waits for their missing loved one at a port in Jindo, South Korea, on April 16, 2014. #

AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon

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South Korean coast guard officers and rescue team members try to rescue passengers from the ferry Sewol on April 16, 2014. #

AP Photo/Yonhap, Hyung Min-woo

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Rescue work by members of the Republic of Korea Coast Guard continues around the site of ferry sinking accident on April 16, 2014. #

The Republic of Korea Coast Guard via Getty Images

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South Korean ferry Sewol, capsized in the sea off Jindo, as flares are released for a night search, on April 16, 2014. #

Reuters/Kim Hong-Ji

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Relatives hug each other as they wait for missing passengers at a port in Jindo, South Korea, on April 16, 2014. #

AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon

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