[CARD NEWS] News that you’re missing because of the Choi Soon-sil scandal
Nov. 2 marks the 931th day since the Sewol ferry disaster.
Fifty days after Sewol ferry salvage operation began, the stemhead of the ferry, which was the core target of the operation, was successfully salvaged.
2) Korea’s Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries’ original plan of operation called for salvaging the stemhead of the ferry in May and finishing the whole operation process until July.
However, in July, they only could salvage the stemhead after six postponements due to what they called “unfavorable situations.”
3) On Oct. 31, the ministry gave a briefing on changing the method to recover the stern of the ferry.
4) After excavating the ocean floor around the ferry, they changed the operation process from installing lifting beams one-by-one for each part of the ferry to placing a number of beams just once. The stern of the ferry is heavier than the stemhead.
5) The ministry forecasted the date would be in July by the time the whole operation is done. But the expected date has been postponed many times — to August, September, and October. It is almost the end of the year and the recovery of the ship’s stern is still in its process.
At this time, with only two months left in the year, a majority of people have the pessimistic view that it is impossible to salvage the whole ferry this year.
6) As they altered the salvaging plan to install the lifting beams all at once, the number of pipelines they have to build, according to the new plan, has increased from eight to 10. Over the past two months, however, they only managed to install two pipelines.
7) “The operation is expected to face difficulty in salvaging the stern of the ferry as the weather is unstable and the tidal current is strong. However, to finish the operation by the expected time, we will keep seeking the measures to continue the operation, even during the winter season.”
- Yeon Young-jin, the director of the Sewol ferry salvage operation at the Ministry of Ocean and Fisheries
8) 931 days have passed since the Sewol ferry tragedy occurred.
There still are nine bodies left under the ocean.
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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