April 17, 2014 -- Updated 1655 GMT (0055 HKT)
Authorities believe 287 people -- many of them high school students on a
field trip -- remain trapped inside the five-story ship. FULL STORY
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POSSIBLE SURVIVORS
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AIR POCKETS GIVE HOPE?
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PASSENGERS' TEXTS
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AIR POCKETS GIVE HOPE?
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PASSENGERS' TEXTSQuestions mount in South Korean ferry disaster; hundreds still missing
April 17, 2014 -- Updated 1645 GMT (0045 HKT)
South Korean ferry captain: 'I am sorry'
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- NEW: Death toll rises to at least 18, and 278 people are missing, authorities say
- Authorities are operating on the assumption that survivors are still in the ship, police chief says
- But bad weather, murky water and darkness have hindered the rescue operation
- Ship's captain faces questions amid reports that ferry may have been off course, turned quickly
Authorities believe 278 people -- many of them high school students on a field trip -- may remain trapped inside the five-story ship. At least some, authorities say, could still be alive more than a day after the ship rolled over.
Heartbreaking text messages purportedly from missing passengers amplified the grief.
"Mom, in case I won't get to tell you, I'm sending this. I love you," reads one purported message carried by CNN affiliate YTN.
Desperate search for ferry passengers
Rescue crews continue search for missing
'I think we are all going to die'
Photos: South Korean ship sinks
"There are a few people
in the ship," another student purportedly wrote to his mother, "and we
are not dead yet, so please send along this message."
CNN could not
independently confirm the authenticity of the messages or when they were
sent. It's also unclear what happened to the people who sent them.
Meanwhile, the ferry's captain is facing mounting questions about the incident.
Among other things,
authorities are investigating the possibility the ship was off course
when it ran into trouble, as well as reports that few of its lifeboats
made it into the water, according to Kim Soo Hyeon, the chief of South
Korea's Yellow Sea Maritime Police Agency.
Ferry captain Lee Joon Suk, his head and face covered, broke down in tears when reporters asked if he had anything to say.
"I am sorry, I am at a loss for words," Lee said at a South Korean Coast Guard office.
At least 18 people were known dead. As of Thursday night, at least 179 had been rescued.
Weather hinders rescue
More than 170 ships and
512 divers have swarmed the ferry about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from
the Jindo, South Korea, harbor where relatives have gathered.
But poor conditions have
kept rescuers from reaching parts of the ship where air pockets could
be sustaining survivors, authorities said.
Relentless rain,
whipping winds and thick fog stymied rescue efforts Thursday. Three of
the 22 volunteer divers who joined the search went missing in high tide
but were later found, YTN said.
Efforts to pump air into the ship also failed because of the bad weather.
Despite government
assurances that rescuers would work around the clock to save lives, some
relatives were angry about the pace of the rescue operation.
"If the government cares
for the people, our family, our children, please rescue our families
and our children," said Chang Min, whose second-grade son is among the
missing.
'Don't move'
The ferry, which is
designed to carry cargo and vehicles as well as passengers, was on a
routine passage between Incheon and the resort island of Jeju when
something went awry shortly before 9 a.m. Tuesday.
South Korean ferry rescue operation
Did human error sink the S. Korean ferry?
South Korean ferry rescue growing desperate
Students trapped in S. Korean ferry
On board were more than 300 Seoul high school students and teachers on a four-day trip to the island.
Passengers told CNN affiliate YTN that the ship began to sharply list and there were loud banging sounds about the same time.
Announcements broadcast over the ship's loudspeakers urged passengers to stay put.
"Don't move," a voice warned, according to a recording obtained by CNN affiliate YTN. "If you move, it's dangerous. Don't move."
Student Lim Hyung Min, who was rescued, told YTN he heard a bang before the ship began to list.
"The students were falling over and crashing into things and bleeding," Lim said.
Rescue helicopters
plucked some passengers from the ship as it lay on its side before
capsizing. Crews of fishing vessels and military ships that raced to the
scene in a heavily used sea lane pulled others from the water.
Few passengers made it to lifeboats.
Social media video
acquired by CNN affiliate JTBC showed at least 12 of the white survival
capsules still attached to the ferry even as it was keeled over in the
water.
It was unclear, however,
exactly how many lifeboats had deployed. Initial reports from YTN said
it was one, but the JTBC video shows what appears to be two lifeboats
next to the ship.
CNN has not been able to independently confirm the reports.
Hopes for survivors
While no one knows if
any of the missing are still alive, authorities said they were operating
under the assumption that there are survivors.
That hope largely hinges on whether trapped passengers are in isolated pockets of air on the ship.
"From the images that I've seen, there's clearly some areas of the hull that are above the water, that are not flooded," Mike Dean, the U.S. Navy deputy director for salvage and diving, told "CNN Tonight."
"So absolutely, there
could be areas in there where there is breathable air, but the trouble
right now is the temperature and getting people to them."
Most passenger bedrooms
were on the fourth level of the five-floor boat, which is now upside
down. Divers tried at least six times to enter the submerged cabins but
were unable to get in, Kim said.
South Korean ferry capsizes
Nearly 300 missing in ferry disaster
Expert: Air pockets possible in SK ferry
Final messages from students on ferry
Rescuers will try to pump air into the ship again Friday, authorities said.
Anguish and impatience
At the Paeng Mok Harbor in Jindo, some family members of the missing passed the hours Thursday staring at the water.
They huddled in gray
ponchos, crying and comforting one another. Some checked their cell
phones constantly, hoping to see a new text message from their missing
loved one.
Others vented their anger about the pace of the progress, throwing chairs in frustration.
Some parents took a boat
toward the accident site, YTN said. But the boat turned back after
several of them became so distraught that they fainted.
At least one parent blamed herself.
Christine Kim's daughter
didn't want to go on her school's field trip to Jeju. After all, she
had just visited the island two months ago.
But Kim urged her to go.
"I told her, 'I think this trip will be (a) very great experience for you,'" the mother said.
Now, she's wracked with guilt as she waits at the dreary harbor. She's been sitting in the cold rain for more than a day.
"How can I sleep when my daughter is in the cold ocean?"
Explanations elusive
South Korean media
reported Thursday that investigators were looking at the possibility
that the ship may have taken a sharp turn, causing vehicles and cargo
aboard to shift and forcing the ship off balance.
CNN has not confirmed those reports.
Kim, the maritime police
chief, said that it appears the ship had deviated from its planned
route but that it did not appear it had hit a rock.
That information
conflicted with an earlier statement by a spokesman for the South Korean
Oceans and Fisheries Ministry, who said the ship was not significantly
off its planned course.
CNN transportation
safety analyst Mary Schiavo said she believed the ship may have struck
something, while retired freighter captain Jim Staples said the ship may
have been trying to make up speed after departing two hours late from
Incheon because of fog.
The ship's operator, Chonghaejin Marine Corp., had no explanation -- only apologies.
"We deeply apologize to the families, and I'm saying once again we're really sorry," Chonghaejin executive Kim Young-bung said.
"Our company will promise that we will do our best not to lose any more lives."
The president of the company tried to venture out to the sunken ferry, but he, too, collapsed and was taken to a hospital.
CNN's Madison Park reported from Jindo and
Holly Yan wrote from Atlanta. CNN's Hyoung Joo Choi, Stella Kim, Frances
Cha, Pauline Chiou, Euan McKirdy and Catherine E. Shoichet contributed
to this report.
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April 17, 2014 -- Updated 1653 GMT (0053 HKT)
"My daughter is in there," Christine Kim said, pointing into the waters.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Kim had to convince her daughter to make the trip
- "All of this happened because of me," she says
- Parents are holding vigil in a harbor
- Many are angry that officials aren't doing enough
"Inside that water," she says, pointing to the choppy waves on the Yellow Sea, "there is my own child."
Kim is an English teacher
at a private tutoring center. Some of her students were aboard the
Sewol headed to the resort island of Jeju when the passenger ferry
listed and sank.
Eighteen people were confirmed dead, and 278 were still missing early Friday. One of them is Kim's youngest daughter.
Photos: South Korean ship sinks
South Korean ferry capsizes
Desperate search for ferry passengers
Rescue crews continue search for missing
"My daughter in the water," Kim said, her voice breaking.
Regret
When the school trip came
up at the Anson Daewon High School, her daughter, Billy, was initially
reluctant. The family had taken a visit to Jeju less than two months
earlier. She didn't want to go on a four-day trip.
"I don't want to go there because I went there one time," her daughter told her.
Kim convinced her otherwise.
"I think this travel would be a great experience for your school days," she recalls telling her.
So, Tuesday night, Billy boarded the ferry.
The next morning, shortly before 9 a.m., students heard a loud bang and the ship began to list.
Some jumped into the frigid water and were rescued. Others have not been heard from.
"All of this," Kim laments, "happened because of me."
Sadness
Throughout the night
Wednesday and into Thursday, family members have camped out at the Paeng
Mok Harbor, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from where the ship
capsized.
They sit on plastic
chairs, huddled together for warmth with blankets on their shoulders.
They're handed coffee cups and instant noodles as they stand vigil.
Mothers and grandmothers cry and console each other.
One elderly man sits on a chair -- his cell phone in his hands, his hands clasped together as if in prayer.
All of them waiting for answers, hoping for a sign.
"It's been almost 30
hours," Kim says. "I can't sleep because my daughter's in the water, in
the cold, cold water -- I can never sleep."
Anger
After the accident,
local media lit up with reports of text messages they said were from
passengers. In one, a passenger describes women screaming in the
darkness. In another, a father learns his child is trapped. In a third, a
son, fearing death, tells his mother he loves her.
They haven't been authenticated. But they are reason enough for some parents to believe more survivors will be found.
The parents here are angry that officials aren't taking the messages seriously.
"We're getting texts from our children from the boat, but they don't believe us," Kim said.
Kim isn't alone in
pointing the finger at the South Korean government. It has failed to
expend all necessary efforts to rescue the students, she says.
South Korean ferry captain: 'I am sorry'
South Korean ferry rescue operation'I think we are all going to die'
Did human error sink the South Korean ferry?
Students trapped in S. Korean ferry
Rescue officials say
they are at the mercy of the elements. It's drizzling, making for poor
visibility. The water currents are powerful, making for dangerous
operations.
Three divers who took it
upon themselves to go look for the missing were momentarily swept away
by the tide Thursday. A fishing boat eventually picked them up.
The massive rescue
efforts has included 169 boats, 29 planes and 512 divers. Crews will
next bring in cranes to stabilize the ship.
"The families must be so
heartbroken, I know it's hard," South Korean president Park Guen-hye
said after touring the accident site Thursday.
"Please," she told rescuers, "I urge you, do your best."
Chang Min, whose second-grade son is among the missing, says he's willing to trust the government "one last time.
But Kim is critical.
But Kim is critical.
"The government is doing nothing for us, as our children are drowning," she says.
Hope
The despondent mother
breaks into a smile when she talks about how Billy came to pick such a
typically American boy's name for herself.
She loved goats when she was little. So she decided to call herself one.
Billy promised her mom she would bring back some delicious snacks from Jeju.
She waits. She knows Billy will be back.
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