Missing Crew Member Found Dead 100km Away a Week After Tugboat Accident

[Anchor]

One of the six missing crew members from the tugboat accident in Busan has been found dead in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province. The location is more than 100 kilometers away from the accident site, prompting the Coast Guard to significantly expand its search area to the northeast.

Here is reporter Kim su-yun with the details.

[Reporter]

The tugboat capsizing accident occurred on the 2nd near the waters off Oryukdo Island in Busan.

Yesterday (the 9th), exactly one week after the accident, the body of one of the six missing crew members was found in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province.

The discovery was made near Dogu Beach in Pohang, a straight-line distance of more than 100 kilometers from the accident waters.

This is the coastal area where the body of the missing person was found.

It was discovered by residents performing environmental cleanup duties as part of a senior employment program, and authorities believe the body drifted to this beach due to strong currents.

[Environmental Cleanup General Manager (Informant) : I told the residents, "Check accurately whether it is a doll or a person and let me know." Then they called me back saying, "It is definitely a person."]
Upon receiving the report, the Coast Guard dispatched personnel and confirmed the identity of the deceased through fingerprint identification and smartphone forensics as a South Korean man in his 50s, identified as Mr. A, who served as the second engineer of the tugboat.

Mr. A was confirmed to be the missing person whom an Indonesian crew member, rescued early in the accident, had testified about, stating, "He fell into the sea while following me out during the escape."

[Rescued Indonesian Crew Member (on the 2nd) : I was on top of the (capsized) ship. The second engineer fell right into the sea.]

He was a crew member who was spotted by container ship personnel immediately after the accident and whose appearance was also briefly captured on CCTV.

With the recovery of Mr. A's body, the death toll from this accident stands at 2, with 5 people still missing.

Believing that the missing persons may have drifted northeastward, the Coast Guard has more than doubled its search range to cover the entire East Coast region.

The Coast Guard also announced that it has requested cooperation from Japan and Russia to aid in the search for the missing persons.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
Reported by Jeong Kyungmun | Video by Lee Hong-myung | Graphics by Kim Han-gil
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.