Authorities in South Korea have charged four people with gross negligence resulting in injury in connection with a vessel grounding incident that occurred in South Jeolla province on Wednesday, November 19.
The locally-registered Ro-Pax ferry Queen Jenuvia II had reportedly veered nearly three kilometres off-course while underway between Jeju and Mokpo on Wednesday night (local time).
Local officials have accused the ferry's first mate of being distracted on his mobile phone while the vessel was transiting a narrow channel on autopilot whereas only manual control was permitted in the area due to the presence of nearby small islands.
Officials said that, because the first mate was distracted, he failed to regain control of the ferry and execute a necessary course change in time, which then resulted in the vessel running aground on an uninhabited island near Jangsan.
The ferry subsequently became stranded with nearly half of its hull on the shore. It has since been towed to a nearby port.
Five people suffered injuries from the incident though all 246 of the vessel's passengers have been safely evacuated.
The Korea Coast Guard said the first mate has admitted to his failure to switch the ferry to manual control due to his being distracted on his mobile phone at the time the course correction needed to be made.
The other accused individuals are the ferry's three helmsmen, all identified as Indonesian nationals.
Officials added that intoxication had not been a contributing factor in the grounding.