Three Vietnamese survive after fishing boat capsizes off South Korea

By Reuters September 16, 2024 | 01:14 am PT

Rescuers retrive bodies from a fishing boat collision in South Korea in 2017. Photo by AP

Three people who were on board a fishing boat that capsized in waters off South Korea's west coast have died after being taken to hospital and five others were rescued, the Yonhap news agency reported on Monday, citing the coast guard.

The fatalities included two South Koreans and one Indonesian, Yonhap reported. Five survivors, three Vietnamese and two Indonesian crew members, were reported to be safe.

President Yoon Suk Yeol was briefed about the incident on Monday morning and ordered the oceans and fisheries minister and the head of the coast guard to deploy all available personnel and equipment to conduct a rescue, his office said.

The 35-ton fishing boat had capsized near Gunsan city in North Jeolla Province at around 7:36 a.m., Yonhap reported earlier, prompting a helicopter and a patrol vessel to be launched.