Vietnam confirms two fishermen missing off Korean coast

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs told VnExpress that two Vietnamese nationals are among the nine fishermen missing after their boat capsized off the coast of Sinan County in Jeonnam Province last Saturday.

Five bodies have been found by South Korean officials, although their nationalities have yet to be confirmed.

The Vietnamese Embassy in South Korea has contacted the families of the two missing Vietnamese citizens to inform them of the situation. Local authorities are currently providing assistance to the missing fishermen’s worried-sick families.

When the fishing vessel Cheongbo, which carried a mixed international crew of 12, sank off the coast of South Korea, three on board were lucky enough to be quickly rescued by a passing commercial vessel.

On Sunday, Korea Joongang Daily quoted a surviving crew member as saying that the two missing Vietnamese had alerted the ship’s engineer that the engine room had flooded just three hours into the vessels journey towards the rich marine life of Chuja-do, a minor archipelago halfway between South Jeolla and Jeju Island.

Other survivors reported that the ship’s fishing equipment blocked some of the vessel’s escape routes, leaving some unable to abandon the sinking trap.

South Korean officials have mobilized 30 coast guard ships and at least eight military planes to scour the sea for the 8 missing mariners.

President Yoon Suk-yeol of South Korea has ordered the deployment of all available resources to find the missing crew and bring solace to their loved ones.