Category: Cruise News
-
Arrest Warrant Issued for Captain of Sewol, the South Korean Ferry
As rescue workers continue their desperate search for any survivors on the Sewol, a South Korean ship filled with high school students that sunk two days ago, an arrest warrant has been issued for the ferry’s captain, Lee Joon Suk (also rendered in English as “Lee Jun-seok”). In addition to the captain of the doomed ferry, South Korean prosecutors are also seeking to arrest the third mate of the ship and another crew member. Prosecutors allege that the third mate, and not the captain, was at the helm of the ship when the accident occurred. The three crew members are being charged with abandoning the ship and its passengers as the ferry was quickly flooded with water. The captain of the ferry has been on the hot seat essentially since the moment the ship started to sink, with early reports indicating that he would likely be charged with accidental manslaughter and negligence. Read more […] -
South Korean Ship Sinking: More Deaths Confirmed, Survivor Hangs Himself, and Other Grim Updates
The news surrounding the Sewol, the South Korean ship filled with high school students that sank on Wednesday for reasons that still aren’t clear, has only become worse. We reported yesterday that the death toll of the shipwreck was almost certain to rise, and unfortunately it has. Twenty eight people, including five students and two teachers, are now confirmed dead, and the prospect of finding any of the missing 270 passengers alive has become increasingly doubtful. One part of the Sewol’s hull remained above water for two days after the shipwreck, meaning at least one section of the ship was not yet flooded, but now the vessel is entirely submerged in the icy waters off the coast of South Korea. Adding another dimension of horror to the tragic shipwreck, one of the survivors committed suicide by hanging himself with a belt from a tree in Jindo, where relatives of missing passengers are staying. He was the vice principal of Ansan Danwon High School, which over 300 passengers on the doomed ferry attended. Read more […] -
South Korean Ship Sinking: Death Toll Continues to Rise, Hundreds Still Missing
Much remains unclear about the sinking of the Sewol, the 500-foot-long South Korean ship that was filled with high school students, but more details have emerged about yesterday’s shipwreck. Unfortunately, many of the those details are grim. The death toll has risen to nine, and 287 passengers remain officially unaccounted for. Given that the ferry, whose sinking may have been precipitated by a collision with a rock or other underwater object, has been submerged in icy water for over an entire day, the final death toll of the sinking of the Sewol will almost certainly climb much higher. The only good news yet to emerge is that 179 have been rescued – this has been confirmed, unlike reports that appeared shortly after the shipwreck that claimed that every student on board the ship had been saved. To the infinite disappointment of the families of the missing, these reports were established to be false. Below we compile all the most important updates about the sinking of the South Korean ship, as well as piece together a narrative of what exactly went wrong. Read more […] -
South Korean Ship Filled with High School Students Sinks
A South Korean ship carrying nearly 500 passengers, including over 300 students, sank off the southwest coast of South Korea, potentially after hitting a rock. The Sewol, a ferry for both cars and passengers, was sailing from Incheon to Jeju, a resort island, when passengers on board heard a loud bump. Shortly thereafter, the ship started to list, triggering a crisis on board the ship, which sent out distress signals at 9:00 AM local time. Little has been confirmed about the sinking of the South Korean ship, but at least two people have died and many more are currently unaccounted for. The most dire possibility is that many passengers were stuck inside the ship when it sank, all but ensuring that the death toll will rise substantially. Read more […] -
Grandeur of the Seas, the Royal Caribbean Ship Possibly Plagued by Norovirus, is Back at Sea
Being trapped in a confined space surrounded by people who are visibly, audibly, and at times olfactibly sick with a highly contagious gastrointestinal illness is a miserable experience. It is this experience that Royal Caribbean passengers over the last two weeks called their cruise vacation. For two weeks in a row, Grandeur of the Seas passengers were stuck on a vessel plagued by what could potentially be norovirus, an infection that causes constant vomiting and diarrhea. The virus also spreads quickly, especially in an environment in which there are high levels of human-to-human contact (like on a cruise ship). Despite the two illness-riddled voyages, Grandeur of the Seas set sail on Saturday to the Bahamas for another seven-day cruise, right on schedule. No reports have yet surfaced about a third outbreak aboard the ship. Read more […] -
Explorer of the Seas, the Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship Filled with Sick Passengers, Returns to Port
After a miserable eight days at sea, the Explorer of the Seas, a large cruise ship in the Royal Caribbean fleet that was filled with sick passengers, has finally returned to port in Bayonne, New Jersey. Thanks to what is believed to be an outbreak of norovirus, which can spread extremely quickly, the Explorer of the Seas cut short its 10-day cruise by two days to return home today. Both healthy and sick passengers alike are no doubt relieved to finally be off the ship, which over the last several days was essentially a floating hospital ward straight out of Albert Camus’ The Plague. Read more […]
