Crewless cargo ship sinks off Gageo Island in South Korea

ANKARA

A cargo vessel with no crew on board sank in waters off Gageo Island on South Korea's southwestern coast early Wednesday morning, local media said.

The unoccupied 200-ton cargo ship, believed to be Chinese flagged, sank in waters off Gageo Island on Wednesday morning after being submerged at a 45-degree starboard angle, Seoul-based Yonhap News Agency reported.

However, no crewman was found on the ship, the news agency said, citing a South Korean Coast Guard statement.

"We are searching the area because there is a possibility that people may have left the ship," a coastguard official was quoted as saying by the news agency.

The coastguard has also launched an investigation into possible illegal entry into South Korea.

Meanwhile, the Chinese consulate-general in Gwangju received a notification from the South Korean coastguards and is currently confirming information with local officials, and has requested that an all-out rescue effort be launched, the Chinese state-run Global Times said in a post on social media platform X.

South Korean authorities detained 22 Chinese nationals who jumped from their ship in waters off the western coastal city of Boryeong in an attempt to illegally enter their country last month, according to reports.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid