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Acting President Choi asks Jeju Air crash investigators to disclose progress before announcing final results

Published: 30 Dec. 2024, 13:46 Updated: 30 Dec. 2024, 16:02

LEE SOO-JUNG
[email protected]

Acting President Choi Sang-mok presides over a meeting at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters convened at the government complex in central Seoul. [NEWS1]

Acting President Choi Sang-mok on Monday asked authorities to transparently disclose progress in their investigation into the deadly Jeju Air crash before announcing the final results.

On Sunday, Jeju Air’s Boeing 737-800 crashed into a wall at Muan International Airport in South Jeolla. The accident claimed 179 lives and injured two survivors.

Choi ordered relevant authorities to “sternly investigate the cause of the accident” during a meeting at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters convened at the government complex in central Seoul.

The Office for Government Policy Coordination, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Ministry of the Interior and Safety, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, National Police Agency and 17 other local governments and public safety agencies attended the meeting.

Choi also asked Jeju Air to "proactively cooperate with relevant authorities’ requests and demands from bereaved families" to actualize responsible post-accident management and a stern investigation.

He also requested the Land Ministry to “conduct an emergency safety inspection on all aspects of aviation systems” to prevent further airplane accidents.

The acting president stressed that responsible management represents a step toward a safer country by comprehensively innovating aviation safety systems to prevent similar accidents.

The acting president also promised to inform the victims’ relatives in detail of the progress made by the authorities in managing and probing the accident through a series of regular briefings by the Regional Office of Aviation director.

For bereaved families, a comprehensive support center — a multiagency effort centering on the Land Ministry — would be run to address their concerns and provide timely explanations of their inquiries, Choi said.

Besides the Land Ministry, the Interior Ministry, the Health Ministry, the National Police Agency, the National Fire Agency, the South Jeolla provincial government, the Muan County office, the Korea Airports Corporation and the airline are participating in the support center.

While Choi said it was heartwrenching to experience such an unexpected accident, he pledged to thoroughly "manage state affairs without any troubles" to condole the bereaved families and return the public's daily lives to normal.

Correct, Dec. 30: Corrected type of the aircraft.

BY LEE SOO-JUNG [[email protected]]