Remembering the Sinking of a South Korean Ship in 2014

Ashley Montague, Staff Writer

The sinking of MV Sewol happened on the morning of April 16th, 2014. This boat was holding very many high school students. The ferry was holding 476 people on board when this happened. Most of the people it held were students from Danwon High School in South Korea. At about 8:58 in the morning, Korean standard time, the ferry sent out a signal for help. The students were scared for their lives but were told to stay where they were and not to move. There were very many students that listened, but some didn’t obey.
In all, 304 people died in this accident. There were only 172 survivors out of the 476 people on board. The passengers and crew members that died were some of the people who listened to the command to stay where they were. The survivors were rescued by nearby fishing boats and other vessels. On May 15th, 2014, 3 crew members and the captain were charged with murder. The other 11 crew members abandoned the ship as well.
Yoo Byung-eun had a warrant for his arrest but could not be found. A lot of people say he fled, so he wouldn’t get in trouble or go to jail despite his ship sinking. He was the owner of Chonghaejin Marine, who operated Sewol. Police revealed that there was a dead body found 415 kilometers South of Seoul, it was Yoo. Police still have no idea how Yoo died.
On the 1st anniversary of this tragedy 4,475 people held candles for the ferry. The families that lost their sons and daughters are devastated. A lot of people made donations to the families to make it easier on them. Bangtan Boys donated 100,000 dollars to the victims’ families. I send lots of love to all the families in Korea and hope they can be a lot happier this year. It was 4 years ago but this type of stuff stays with you for a life time. Seeing how strong the survivors are now makes me happy, and I’m so glad they’re ok.