WATCH ABOVE: The death toll from the ferry sinking off the South Korean coast has topped 150 with nearly 150 others still missing. A week after the disaster, the hope of finding survivors is dwindling. NBC’s Bill Neely reports from Jindo, South Korea.
LATEST UPDATES:
- Over 150 bodies have been recovered, nearly 150 are still missing
- Relatives of the missing maintain anxious vigil by the sea as search efforts continue
- School worst affected by ferry sinking prepares to re-open for classes
TORONTO – South Korean authorities said on Wednesday that recovery is also becoming more difficult as divers must now break through cabin walls to retrieve more bodies.
READ MORE: Families confront officials, reports say ship was overloaded
To date, 156 bodies have now been retrieved but nearly 150 are still missing after the ferry sank a week ago. The cause of the disaster is not yet known.
Task force spokesman Koh Myung-seok said divers must now break through cabin walls.
WATCH: Rescue diver attempts to break window on submerged South Korean ferry
“Bodies have mostly been found on the third and fourth floors of the ferry, where many passengers seemed to have gathered,” said Koh. “Many students were housed in cabins on the fourth floor, near the stern of the ship.”
According to the Associated Press, “most of the bodies found in the last two days have had broken fingers, as the children are believed to have tried to climb walls or floors in their last minutes.”
‘Even if there is only one survivor’
Authorities also said on Wednesday that they will not begin lifting the wreck of the sunken ferry while there is any chance of life within it.
Several giant ship-borne cranes have been standing by at the site of the sinking for days, waiting to begin to cut up and raise the submerged vessel.
The government has warned that the work might eliminate air pockets that could be sustaining survivors.
“Even if there is only one survivor, our government will do its best to rescue that person, and then we will salvage the ferry,” said director-general of South Korea Coastguard Equipment and Technology Bureau Ko Myung-suk.
Relatives of the missing maintain anxious vigil by the sea
Relatives of passengers on board the sunken ferry gathered at Paengmok Port on Wednesday in an attempt to find out information about their loved ones.
The signboard at the port on Jindo Island is filling up with the names of dead passengers who have been brought to shore by rescue teams.
WATCH: Frustrated families are pleading with officials to ramp up recovery efforts so they can lay their loved ones to rest
Some relatives cried out and ran from a makeshift identification area set up in a tent as their family member’s names appeared on lists of victims. Others stood red-eyed and shell-shocked.
Descriptions of the dead are read over a loudspeaker.
School worst affected by ferry sinking prepares to re-open for classes
Staff and students at Danwon High School in the Korean city of Ansan face the grim reality of having to resume classes on Thursday even as the school mourns the deaths of many of its second-year students and teachers in the accident.
Empty classrooms and notes pleading for students to return safely are haunting reminders of what the rest of the student body must face on Thursday.
“There is not just sadness, but also a lot of guilt. There are also a lot of emotions of anger and rage. Also, some students cannot even express their emotions, and are in a dazed state,” said school psychiatrist Hong Hyun-ju.
The school will be doing its best to help the students through their grief and shock while attempting to normalise classes by providing psychiatry sessions.
“(We are trying to help) the children overcome the shock and loss they are going through. And we are providing an intensive psychiatry programme to prevent any second round of after-effects that may occur,” said Hong.
Funerals for students and teachers continue in Ansan and a temporary memorial altar opened on Wednesday, a grieving reminder of the loss of young lives in the community.
Twenty-two of the 29 members of the ferry’s crew survived, and 11, including Capt. Lee Joon-seok, have been arrested or detained in connection with the investigation.
Two of the crew were arrested Wednesday, senior prosecutor Ahn Sang-don said.
– with files from The Associated Press
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