Confusion, Anger As Sunken Ferry's Relatives Wait

By GILLIAN WONG, Associated Press, San Antonio Express-News: World
Sat, 04/19/2014 - 5:52am

A few dozen relatives rose from the gymnasium floor and surged toward the stage, hurling rapid-fire questions — and a thick, rolled-up wad of paper — at the officials, who stood mostly silently, their heads bowed. The exchange illustrated how relatives of about 270 people missing have grown increasingly exasperated and distrusting of South Korean authorities, in part because of confusion, early missteps and perceived foot-dragging. People murmur to each other or sit silently, staring at the screens that show pixellated footage of ships, rescue rafts and yellow bobbing buoys. First aid officers take care of those who have collapsed from exhaustion and grief, hooking them up to glucose intravenous drips. The high school initially sent parents text messages saying all of the students had been rescued. "The students were killed because the crew members and teachers and adults told them to crawl in the cabin and stay," Lee said, weeping as he spoke in the gymnasium. The ferry's captain — who was arrested Saturday along with two crew members — has drawn criticism for waiting about 30 minutes to order an evacuation, by which time the boat had listed so steeply many could not escape. Saturday's briefing began with a family member presenting video footage shot by a diver using a head-mounted camera the night before. The only sounds that could be heard in the gym were the diver's breathing as he gripped a rope with gloved hands and used a flashlight to illuminate the murky water. Shin Won-sup, special rescue forces lieutenant of the coast guard's south regional headquarters, had barely started explaining the operation when a man in a blue jacket interrupted him.

NEXT
Topics:  south korean   people   lee   shin won-sup   confusion   ferry's   relatives   wait   gymnasium   diver   crew   members   saturday   rescue   footage   silently   students   

 

NEXT
Welcome to Wopular!

Welcome to Wopular

Wopular is an online newspaper rack, giving you a summary view of the top headlines from the top news sites.

Senh Duong (Founder)
Wopular, MWB, RottenTomatoes

Subscribe to Wopular's RSS Fan Wopular on Facebook Follow Wopular on Twitter Follow Wopular on Google Plus

MoviesWithButter : Our Sister Site

Movies With Butter More Movie News

More World News

  • Concerns Grow as Conflict Escalates Between Israel and Hezbollah
    Time, Friday - 09/20/2024 - 09:36 AM

    U. S., U. K. and United Nations officials urged restraint as tensions ramped up between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. After days of escalating conflict, Israel carried out extensive airstrikes targeting Southern Lebanon on Sept. 19 and Hezbollah retaliated on Sept. 20, prompting fears of further conflict and a wider Middle East war.

    More | Talk | Read It Later | Share
  • Japan Celebrates Shohei Ohtani Making History in the MLB With 50-50 Record
    Time, Friday - 09/20/2024 - 04:40 AM

    TOKYO — Shohei Ohtani’s feat of becoming the first major leaguer with at least 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a season was met with extra editions of newspapers for fans to read on their way to work on Friday morning in Japan. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Ohtani raced past the 50-50 milestone as he hit three home runs and stole two bases in a game during the 20-4 rout of the Miami Marlins on Thursday, securing a playoff berth for the Dodgers. Read More: Shohei Ohtani Is What Baseball Needs The news topped morning headlines, and “Ohtani-san” was the No.

    More | Talk | Read It Later | Share
  • Taiwan Court Upholds Legality of Death Penalty but Limits Use to Only the Most Serious Crimes
    Time, Friday - 09/20/2024 - 04:10 AM

    Taiwan’s Constitutional Court upheld the legality of the death penalty but moved to limit its use, in a decision that strikes a balance between keeping the punishment’s deterrent effect and preventing its abuse. The court on Friday affirmed the constitutionality of capital punishment but restricted its use to only the most serious crimes, while emphasizing the need for better safeguards.

    More | Talk | Read It Later | Share
  • ‘It Sounded Like Gunfire.’ Lebanese Reel From Deadly Pager and Radio Blasts
    Time, Thursday - 09/19/2024 - 03:56 PM

    First, on Tuesday, there were exploding pagers. On Wednesday, walkie-talkies began detonating, along with other electronic devices. Panic took hold of whole areas across Lebanon—particularly in Shia communities where Hezbollah are present—as devices designed to be held in the hand and close to the face blew fingers off hands and took out eyes. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] “We were confused at first,” Joumana, who was visiting loved ones at a hospital in Lebanon’s capital Beirut on Wednesday, tells TIME.

    More | Talk | Read It Later | Share
  • Japanese Brand on Exploding Walkie-Talkies Says They Haven’t Made the Devices for 10 Years
    Time, Thursday - 09/19/2024 - 03:33 AM

    Japan’s Icom Inc., whose brand appears on walkie-talkies that exploded in Lebanon, said it halted production a decade ago of the model allegedly used in the attacks and is still investigating the situation. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Icom exported its IC-V82 two-way radio to regions including the Middle East until October 2014, when it stopped making and selling the devices, the Osaka-based company said in a statement Thursday.

    More | Talk | Read It Later | Share
  • What Does Anwar Ibrahim Stand for? Malaysia’s PM on His Balancing Act at Home and Abroad
    Time, Thursday - 09/19/2024 - 03:00 AM

    A lot has changed since my last conversation with Anwar Ibrahim 10 years ago, when he jumped on a crackly phone call between court hearings to reveal his chances of beating a trumped-up sodomy charge “didn’t look good.” [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Things looked considerably brighter for Malaysia’s Prime Minister when we caught up last month at the opening of German semiconductor giant Infineon’s new Malaysia plant.

    More | Talk | Read It Later | Share