Abalone Myeong Minho Rescue work Night, strong wind, swell, obstacles, low water temperature 5

Rescue work for the crew of a capsized fishing boat near Jeju port is experiencing difficulties due to the night, strong winds, storm surge and obstacles.

According to the Jeju Maritime Police Station, at 7:44 pm on the 29th, a 32-person trawler (39 tons), a trawler, was capsized at a point about 2.6 km northwest of Jeju Port.

The capsized fishing boat was found to have 7 people on board, including Captain Kim Mo (55), 4 Korean sailors and 3 foreign sailors.

Upon receiving the accident report, the coast guard immediately mobilized five boats and a helicopter to initiate search and rescue operations.

At 9:11 pm, when a helicopter found the 32 min-ho capsized in the sea about 1.3 km north of Jeju port, the coast guard immediately dispatched a rescue team.

In the area of ​​the incident, strong winds of 17-20 meters per second continue to precipitate, accompanied by heavy rains and high waves of more than 3 meters. Rescuers managed to climb onto the capsized boat and continue to work in the rescue amid the precarious danger of falling immediately.

At 9:21 p.m., rescuers hit the hull to check the ship’s reaction, and then attempted to enter the ship through four dives that began at 9:52, but all failed.

Fishing gear, such as nets scattered around fishing boats, blocked the entry of rescue teams in a situation where underwater visibility was not assured at night.

A maritime affairs official said: “Since 32 people have been completely overthrown, rescuers have to dive to rescue the crews inside, but it is not easy to get in because the fishing gear, like the nets, are tangled.”

He stressed that “if the rescuer is caught in the net when the sight is not properly secured, the rescuer’s life is also in danger.”

He explained: “If the wave is more than 3 m, it is difficult to stand upright on a small boat without supporting a pillar or a wall, and it becomes even more difficult to control the body when it rains and the wind blows.”

He continued: “It is difficult to carry out rescue activities on board as usual in a situation where it is not easy to focus a searchlight on a fishing boat to be rescued,” he said. “It is becoming the biggest obstacle to rescue as weather conditions worsen.” did.

The Coast Guard said that even if the crew members are gathered in the airbags inside the capsized fishing boat, the time for the crew members to withstand the oxygen shortage and hypothermia will not be up to 24 hours, and is stimulating rescue work.

The Coast Guard has installed several lift bags (air bags that add buoyancy to the boat) to prevent the abalone fishing boat from sinking.

Currently, the water temperature in the sea area is 15-16 degrees. This level of water temperature is equivalent to that of a general public bathroom. When a strong wind of 15-20m per second is added to this, the perceived temperature of a person floating on the surface becomes subzero. In this situation, you are more likely to develop hypothermia.

When hypothermia occurs, the body temperature near the heart that supplies blood drops, slowing down blood circulation, breathing, and nervous system functions, leading to death.

The Coast Guard is conducting a search of nearby seas in case the crew members are adrift.

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