The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said on the 29th it will install an official lighthouse on Jokdo in Sinan County, South Jeolla, to strengthen passenger ship safety on the Mokpo-Jeju route. A temporary lighthouse installed in February will be converted to an official lighthouse and reinstalled.
Waters near Jokdo are where the passenger ship "Queen Jenuvia II" ran aground in November while heading to Mokpo from Jeju. There were no casualties at the time, but accidents involving passenger ships can lead to mass casualties.
In response, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF) has operated a temporary lighthouse in the waters since February to prevent a recurrence of the accident.
With the conversion to an official lighthouse, its size will also increase. The height will be expanded about fourfold from 4 meters to 16 meters, and the diameter about sixfold from 0.4 meters to 2.5 meters. Through this, the lighthouse can be identified more clearly and its durability will improve, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF) said.
Construction to install the official lighthouse will begin on June 30, with completion targeted for late October. The temporary lighthouse will remain in operation until the official lighthouse is installed.
Lee Su-ho, director general of maritime safety at the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF), said, "We will continue to expand and thoroughly maintain aids to navigation to ensure the safe operation of ships."