Search efforts for six crew members missing after a tugboat capsized off the coast of Busan have so far been unsuccessful, despite overnight operations by the coast guard.
According to the Busan Coast Guard, search operations were conducted from 7 p.m. the previous day until 6 a.m. today, utilizing flares, but no missing persons were located.
The area where the tugboat A capsized (25 km wide and 12 km long) was divided into 15 zones, with 19 vessels deployed, including 11 coast guard ships, four navy ships, and four from the Busan city and fire department.
Approximately 270 flares were used during the nighttime search (30 from the coast guard and 240 from the air force). An unmanned underwater vehicle (ROV) from the navy's Gwangyang was also deployed for underwater searches.
Three aircraft, including one from the coast guard and two from the air force, participated in the search.
While the sea temperature is relatively high, strong winds and currents have complicated the search efforts.
According to international maritime search and rescue guidelines, the maximum survival time for missing persons in maritime accidents is over 40 hours when the sea temperature is above 20 degrees Celsius. As of the previous afternoon, the sea temperature near Oryukdo was recorded at 25.1 degrees.
The Busan Coast Guard reported that at approximately 1:29 p.m. today, the 286-ton tugboat A capsized about 9 km east of Oryukdo.
When discovered, the A was overturned next to a container ship B, with part of its hull submerged.
There were eight crew members on board, including six South Koreans and two Indonesians. One Indonesian crew member was rescued by a nearby merchant vessel, while one South Korean was found unconscious inside the A and was transported to a hospital, where he later died.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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