Police currently investigating an accident in which the large passenger ship Queen Jenuvia II ran aground after colliding with an uninhabited island off Sinan County, South Jeolla Province, have urgently arrested the first mate and the helmsman who were on board. They are suspected of neglecting proper navigation and doing other things such as searching for news on a cellphone.
The Mokpo Korea Coast Guard said on the 20th it had urgently arrested the Queen Jenuvia II's first mate, a man in his 40s identified as A, and the helmsman, a man in his 40s of Indonesian nationality identified as B, on suspicion of causing injuries to passengers by running the ferry aground (gross negligence resulting in injury).
The investigation found that A missed the timing to alter course (change direction) because A was looking at a cellphone.
The ferry was supposed to alter course at a point about 1,600 meters from Jukdo, where the accident occurred, but A is believed to have noticed this only when the ship was 100 meters in front of the uninhabited island.
In particular, because the section is a dangerous narrow channel, the autopilot must be switched to manual for navigation, but A was found to have failed to switch to manual and was doing something else.
At the time, the ferry was sailing at 22 knots (about 40–45 kph), and the accident occurred about two to three minutes after passing the point where the course change should have been made.
In the initial statement, A said the steering gear did not move properly, but in a subsequent investigation A admitted, "I missed the steering point while searching for news."
Given the statement about a steering gear abnormality, the Korea Coast Guard plans to conduct an on-site examination, but considering that the ferry returned to port under its own power, it views the possibility of a hull defect as low.
The Korea Coast Guard also determined that B, a foreign crew member who was with A, failed to perform the assigned role. To confirm why B did not switch the autopilot to manual, investigators have called in an interpreter and are checking the details.
The Korea Coast Guard has also booked the captain, C, in his 60s, who is under investigation. C is believed to have stayed out of the wheelhouse on the grounds that it was not working hours at the time of the accident. However, the Korea Coast Guard believes the captain has a duty to direct operations from the wheelhouse when the vessel passes dangerous sections such as narrow channels.
The Queen Jenuvia II departed Jeju at about 4:45 p.m. the previous day carrying 267 people, including 246 passengers and 21 crew. While heading for its destination of Mokpo, at about 8:16 p.m. the same day, the bow rode up about halfway onto Jokdo, an uninhabited island near Jangsan Island in Sinan County, and the vessel ran aground.