Two Chinese sailors booked for fleeing after fishing boat crash off South Jeolla

Two Chinese sailors were booked on charges of crashing into a fishing boat and fleeing without offering assistance in waters off Korea's southwestern coast, leaving two sailors missing and its captain dead, the Coast Guard said Friday.

The two Chinese nationals were in charge of the night shift while sailing a 9,734-ton container ship when it collided with a 33-ton fishing trawler in waters northeast of Gageo Island off Mokpo in South Jeolla at around midnight Wednesday. They allegedly fled the scene without taking rescue measures.

The crash left the boat capsized, leaving its Korean captain dead and two Indonesian sailors missing.

Six others were rescued by nearby fishing boats after hanging on to floating objects for some four hours.

Under the Maritime Safety Act, a sailing ship has an obligation to keep away from a fishing ship in operation.

The survivors told the Coast Guard that the container ship did not change course despite them sounding a warning horn.

The Coast Guard has put the two Chinese sailors under emergency arrest and is interrogating others aboard the container ship, including its captain.

The fishing boat was towed ashore and will be righted for an examination of its interior.

Yonhap