South Korea Raises Ferry That Sank in 2014 Disaster
By CHOE SANG-HUNMARCH 22, 2017
SEOUL, South Korea — A South Korean ferry that sank nearly three years ago, killing more than
300 people — most of them teenagers on a school trip — was raised to the surface on Thursday.
When huge crowds of people rallied in central Seoul in recent months to demand
that Ms. Park be removed, the government’s botched rescue operation was a central grievance voiced against the president.
Dozens of ferry company officials, safety inspectors
and Coast Guard officials have also been jailed or convicted on various criminal charges related to the sinking.
The first Coast Guard boat that arrived at the scene did little more than pick up the fleeing crew members, while
passengers trapped inside the ferry banged on the windows as the ship slowly disappeared beneath the waves.
Nine people who were on board remain missing, including four students
and two teachers from Danwon High School in Ansan, south of Seoul, the South Korean capital.
Some of the bereaved family members and sympathetic activists have camped out in Seoul
and kept watch on the salvage operation from islands near the site, calling for a more thorough investigation into the government’s response.
