Six of eight crew members rescued, one dead, two still missing amid search off Busan

Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Hwang Jong-woo (second from left) reviews the search and rescue operation for missing crew members from the Dong-a No. 3 collision at the Ulsan Coast Guard station on Thursday. [Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries]
Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Hwang Jong-woo (second from left) reviews the search and rescue operation for missing crew members from the Dong-a No. 3 collision at the Ulsan Coast Guard station on Thursday. [Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries]

The government is mounting a full-scale search for missing crew members following a collision between the fishing vessel Dong-a No. 3 and a gas carrier off Gijang-gun, Busan.

Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Hwang Jong-woo visited the Ulsan Coast Guard station on Thursday to review the search and rescue operation, ordering officials to "mobilize all available personnel and equipment and do everything possible to find the missing."

After receiving a briefing from officials at the scene, Hwang urged them to "share updates on the search quickly and spare no support, so that families can be relieved of at least some of the anxiety and hardship caused by the accident."

He also told search and rescue personnel to "take special care to prevent any safety incidents during the course of the operation."

The accident occurred Thursday when the Dong-a No. 3 (79.83 tons), a large stern-trawl fishing vessel, collided with a gas carrier about 24 nautical miles southeast of Daebyeon Port in Gijang-gun, Busan.

Of the eight crew members on board, five were rescued and one died after being pulled from the water. The remaining two are still missing. The coast guard and related agencies have deployed vessels and aircraft to continue the search.


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