The Ferry Sewol Part 1: Cowards in Command

On April 16, 2014; mistakes at the helm, negligent modifications to the ship combined with the overloading & instability of cargo, led to the capsizing of the Chonghaejin Ferry, MV Sewol off the coast of South Korea.
The Subsequent Cowardice and total absence of leadership in the most critical moments of this crisis... led to an abysmal attempt at rescue and the tragic loss of more than 300 innocent lives. This, is Part 1.
▶THE FERRY SEWOL PART 2 (The Conclusion): • The Ferry Sewol Part 2...
▶REFERENCES, SOURCES & FEATURED MEDIA: pastebin.com/T2MwkQ5f
(*And Shout-Out to Newstapa for their journalistic bravery and integrity as this story unfolded: • Newstapa(KCIJ) - 'Gold... )
▶Timestamps:
00:00 The Sewol Ferry Route & Danwon High School Intro and Background
02:51 What Happened To The Sewol Ferry - Overview
07:46 Sewol Ferry Vessel History - The Naminoue
08:48 Chonghaejin Marine - Sewol Owner's Company History
09:38 Sewol Vessel Retrofits - Misguided Modifications
11:09 How The Sewol Ferry Capsized - Chonghaejin Crew Mistakes Throughout
16:40 Why The Sewol Rescue Failed - Cowards Rescue Cowards
20:10 Coast Guard Communication Failures & Civilians Attempt Rescue
25:09 Lives in the Balance as Sewol Drifts - Republic of Korea Betrays its People
▶MUSIC:
-Produced by @Mors
-"They Mostly Come out at Night" by Jim Hall
-Remixes by Brick Immortar
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[@BrickImmortar]

This is Part 1 as this massive, infuriating story of such negligent injustice... just can't be summed up into any sort of "short form" video. ▶THE FERRY SEWOL PART 2 (The Conclusion): kzbin.info/www/bejne/gn69eqp-rbuHqsU The Sampoong Department Store Collapse: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aGacmIytibyIr7c Hotel New World Collapse - Singapore: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ambXp355q7VnsLc Toss a coin to your Researcher? The Immortar Supporters really do help to make in-depth content like this possible: Patreon: www.patreon.com/BrickImmortar PayPal: www.paypal.com/paypalme/brickimmortar

[@topiasr628]

Brilliant work as always, good sir

[@toni5431]

I've been aware of this one for a long time and I've watched everything I can find on Sewol Ferry tragedy. The aftermath led to major civil unrest in Korea and thankfully it brought about big political changes. The poor parents tho have never had real answers as to why their children were left to die so horrifically. It's heartbreaking stuff.

[@lomaxrobert]

Sadly this is far from the only time 'responsible' adults let children down. 74 students at Okawa Elementary School died in the 2011 Japan tsunami because they lined up patiently while the teachers endlessly debated what to do. There was a steep hill right beside the school but the kids were told not to climb it, although disobeying that instruction would have saved their lives. Younger kids are even more likely to follow orders of course.

[@exreds]

Great video. When will part 2 come out?

[@sorestedhebytheTumtumtree]

Everytime I talk about this tragedy my voice just breaks before I could finish saying what I want to say.

[@svenleuchtenberger6606]

Lying to parents in the aftermath of a disaster and making them believe their children survived is just so unbelievably vile.

[@katherinekeller4149]

Like .... what did they think was going to happen? That the parents would never ask about their children again? That the truth would never come out. The way they acted was the way that a small child acts -- lie now, and maybe there won't be consequences later?

[@Wildstar40]

@@katherinekeller4149 Yes is it disgusting how they responded to this incident and it only raises more questions like: "What else are they hiding and lying about ?"

[@pilotbug6100]

@@Wildstar40 I think stuff like that should possibly carry the death penalty

[@rrenkrieg7988]

@@pilotbug6100 it's dereliction of duty through and through

[@g.w.7893]

It's all about keeping up appearances. A legacy of shame.

[@KimiGR5]

There was another video I watched on this tragedy. A parent of a late student was interviewed and she said that before losing her child, she was on the phone with them. She told them "Stay there and listen to your superiors. Be good, and you'll be safe." I had never seen so much pain and regret on a woman's face.

[@Tamaki742]

Jesus, I mean it's not like she's wrong to say that. The people in charge of the ship is expected to know what to do and follow the protocols in place. No one would expect them to just up and leave children behind.

[@Lloydsicles]

I saw that video, it nearly brought me to tears, seeing her regretting to tell her child to be put and not jump off the boat

[@Ishizu09]

@@Tamaki742 well... when a ship is sinking you dont tell to anyone to stay in their cabin.... its common sense. But people who dont travel with boats often may not think like that.

[@pendlera2959]

@@Ishizu09 When you're in an emergency in an environment where you know nothing about what the safest protocols are, you don't just take matters into your own hands; you listen to the people who are trained. There are many, many situations where people all panicking and doing whatever seems right in their untrained minds actually makes things worse.

[@charliewhiskey8440]

@@pendlera2959 Not wrong, it's just unfortunate this ship's crew turned out to be completely untrained and unprepared.

[@QaDri93]

“Most of the student passengers obeyed the announcements. Some passengers, who disobeyed the announcements, climbed to the top of the ship or jumped into the water and were rescued.” It pisses me off. The students trusted the adults because this is what you’re normally taught when confronted with a situation like this. “Don’t panic and listen to the authorities because you might make things worse.” They listened and they suffered for it.

[@keri0731]

they listened and they Died for it.

[@steveclapper5424]

A lesson for today.

[@nthgth]

Nine times out of ten, that would have been correct advice though. Gotta play the odds.

[@MizTheDonGargon]

@@nthgth no... wtf is a teacher going to know in a situation like this? they were told to follow their teachers and the ones that were like fuck this these people are fools, I'm out of here... are the ones that lived

[@m.williams4971]

I hate to say it, but it’s largely a cultural issue here. I’ll venture among U.S. high school students, a much larger fraction would have blown off the order to stay put and would have been saved.

[@tombombadilofficial]

*I have often low key wondered why in almost every recent Korean disaster movies I have watched, the Korean government are almost always presented in a negative light as being unreliable and downright ineffective at responding to disastrous events. Real life events like these are the reason why.*

[@ZaHandle]

this hurts to read. please tone down the bolding

[@jpjp3486]

Are you sure those weren't documentaries?

[@BubbleTea033]

Korean Air 801 crashed because the first officer and flight engineer didn't speak up when it was clear the captain was going to crash the plane into the ground. They made "suggestions" that were shrugged off, but even when it was clear that direct, immediate action was needed to save the plane, they just sat silently and waited for death. To them, death was preferable to shame and career suicide. The ferry incident is just another reminder that nothing had changed in 15 years. And to clear, the issue isn't specifically the government, it's the social hierarchy that permeates the culture from the top down. Large, rich families own much of the economy and continuously find ways to keep consolidating that power. Your entire professional career is determined by how much you're willing to suck up to the influential people in your circles. In the ferry incident, no one wanted to be at fault. Admitting that there was a problem meant exposing the wrongdoings of superiors at every level of authority involved. It was the lowly fishermen who had nothing to lose and no superiors to suck up to whom eventually took action.

[@Minguin_37]

Watch "all of us are dead" and i understand it better, like for real, goverment failled to protect them, this innocent souls are on the goverments bloody hands.

[@A.Girl.Has.No.Name.]

The fishermen and civilian boaters did more for the passengers of that ferry than did the crew OR Coast Guard!

[@irneaa]

Right

[@deanc91]

@@hatman4818 This is important to remember, as the establishment continues to demand the civilians to give up more and more of their personal responsibilities and abilities to the establishment, which the establishment will promptly fail to follow through, especially during times of crisis, leaving the civilians to fend for themselves but now unable and unequipped to perform which they once were able to do themselves.

[@andrewp6387]

They even chased away foreign coast guards who offered free help

[@bobbygetsbanned6049]

It's chilling seeing small vessels, obviously civilian, rescuing passengers, meanwhile the coast guard cutter is "monitoring" aka doing NOTHING, 70 miles away?! Such a sickening tragedy that could have been avoided.

[@bobbygetsbanned6049]

@@deanc91 Yup, this is the product of collectivism. The passengers should have been able to tell it was time to ignore the orders and rescue them selves, unfortunately they are strictly trained to follow orders. That doesn't excuse any of the response to the sinking from the crew and coast guard, who just let them die.

[@alexthai5223]

For all the disasters and tragedies that have occurred in recent and older times throughout history that I watched documentaries or personal retellings with, the sinking of the Sewol was probably one of few that elicited a strong emotional response from me, one of anger, fury, and cynicism, due to how many young futures were lost in the disaster, and the fact the people whom they looked up to save them basically left them out for dead, saving their own skins, then lying about how they managed to save everyone.

[@notthatdonald1385]

I agree, but I'm fresh out of anger, and cynicism.

[@change_your_oil_regularly4287]

Absolutely infuriating. No way to dispel it though. I'd have never expected something like this from "modern" South Korea. My ignorance I guess. I had imagined stuff like this would go much like it would in many other developed countries U.S., U.K., France, Australia, New Zealand, Germany etc etc. I was wrong.

[@BTG07]

After 7 years I'm still as angry as I was years ago. Cant imagine how the parents feel now.

[@ED-es2qv]

Put a recording on loop telling the kids to stay below decks, then jump on the first rescue boat and act like the kids are already gone. Cold.

[@Zarastro54]

@@change_your_oil_regularly4287 This kind of cowardly blame shifting and covering up is something you’d expect from North Korea. Ironically, the people who were responsible for this mess deserve a North Korean style punishment (well, the individuals, not their families).

[@betamax1091]

They had HOURS to rescue these kids as the ferry slowly sunk. HOURS! How damn hard could it have been to say, "get out of your rooms, get on the deck, hang on, and jump in the water if this damn boat sinks!!!" What an insane, insane tragedy. I feel so much anger and sadness for these poor children and poor parents. Imagine imagining your child's senseless death?! So many of these kids texted their parents in their last moments.

[@brigidtheirish]

Not only that, but several other *countries* offered help. The *US Navy* called saying they had a boat in the area that could help. South Korea's government *refused everything.*

[@chineyrodriguez5081]

⁠​⁠@@brigidtheirish I heard there was 1,000 marines in that US Navy boat all trained in underwater rescue.

[@A1Kira]

@@brigidtheirish That single navy boat had enough equipment to rescue everyone in an hour or less. they were specially trained for this and they had helicopters as well.

[@GreatWhiteShark75]

The South Korean Gov't could be overwritten by the international law called the "Law of the Sea." You render assistance regardless of denying help. It was not a government owned ship, so the law should have applied. I was in the U.S. Navy for 7 years and this Law existed at my time.

[@jayterra2060]

@@GreatWhiteShark75wow so really everyone is to blame

[@oldetymebiker2405]

As a former ferry Captain with nearly 40 years experience navigating the Dire Straights in Northern Alaska, I know when the ferry line I formerly worked for put FOUR new decks on top of MY ferry I called them straight away and said, "I'm not driving that, it looks dangerous".

[@SoonerKiller442]

I'm very happy you said what you did. As Captain, with all the responsibility on your shoulders, it is indeed YOUR ferry, and they are YOUR passengers. If only the Captain and crewmen that found themselves in this situation had held the same principles. Everything that happened here was unacceptable in the extreme.

[@ARMAfuckenGEDDON]

Is that why you became a FORMER ferry Captain?

[@cavemanlovesmoke4394]

@@ARMAfuckenGEDDON if it was then it speaks volumes about the co

[@m.williams4971]

@@ARMAfuckenGEDDON No, think about it, with 40 years experience and assuming this happened to him about 10 or more years ago, he’s likely reached an age for retirement from navigating ships, therefore is a ‘former’ Captain. Why would he stop doing a decades old job just because one vessel was shady? He’s simply telling you a story about his standards.

[@catsantos353]

🫡 that’s all I can say, Captain! Thank you for your integrity

[@effluviah7544]

Out of respect for the children who died from multiple tiers of negligence and incompetence in this awful and mostly (if not nearly completely) avoidable tragedy, I have paused this video momentarily to look further into this and have now watched about an hour of content recovered from the student's phones (video and audio) as well as calls and messages that had been recorded by parents and siblings/friends who were not on the vessel. All subtitled as I do not speak Korean, so of course there may be translation issues here and there, but I cannot emphasise enough that these kids were put through absolute hell. They all, in every case that I have seen, even when the ship began to list severely and their rooms began to flood, stuck together with each other and did exactly as they were told out of a desire to help rescue efforts that they were made to believe were underway and to increase each other's chances of survival-- The last bit making this so much more horrific. These kids were well behaved, but the rules they were following were faulty and the instructions they got were incorrect at best and actively detrimental otherwise. In one video from a passenger's phone, a student (a boy) starts to put on a life vest, then calls into the hallway to ask a group of girls if they all have life vests. They say no, two of them out of a group of around five in total can't find any. The boy and his friend (who is filming) shuffle around a bit, and when the camera is picked up again, they are staggering their way into the hall to give their own life vests to the two girls who are clearly terrified. In another video, an alert comes over the PA system, which was not translated in the video I watched, but one boy proceeds to ask, "Doesn't it make more sense to leave? Won't we flood here?" In a follow up video from what appears to be the same group of students some time later, their rooms are indeed beginning to flood, and while they are handling it incredibly well, they are all absolutely terrified and joking nervously with each other... One student says, "I knew this would happen!" And it might be the same boy as the first video, although I'm not sure as the speaker is not on camera so I'm unable to confirm that. These children acted with more selflessness, sense, and bravery than any of the adults involved at any level. It is so heartbreaking that I can't advise anyone look up these videos, although they are available in compilations (some of which were made by their friends and families from what I can understand from translating the Korean text where it is present in some video descriptions), purely because the amount of compassion and pride for these kids who behaved incredibly well under horrifying circumstances is nearly overwhelmed by the rage of knowing that most of them went on to be killed by incompetence and negligence which was absolutely not their fault-- None of these children had to die. In fact, most of them had the right idea and wanted to take correct actions early on from what I have seen in most of their recordings, but they were actively discouraged by those in charge and told not to. It's breathtakingly infuriating and heart-wrenching, and I urge everyone to take care of yourselves and not watch these videos if you may be particularly prone to internalising these types of situations or content. Know your limits; It is absolutely okay if you don't think you can handle it, as nobody should have to handle it, because it shouldn't have happened in the first place. I grieve the loss of so many lives, especially young lives, at the hands of incompetence, corruption, and all around ineptitude by all those who were charged with their safety and wellbeing. I truly hope their friends and families are doing as well as possible, that the few survivors are doing as well as possible, and that this tragedy if nothing else may contribute to better maritime safety procedures not just in Korea, but in general. There is obviously no real positive outcome, aside from the hope that it may inspire better practices going forward in local and other maritime operations and services. If this tragedy encourages even one ship to run more safely, then it may be the case that this incident at the very least may help to prevent other similar tragedies from occurring in the future. That's the best I can offer at the moment, in regards to any kind of "good" result of any of this; I try to end on a positive note when dealing with serious cases and especially those involving children, but it is sometimes very difficult to do so, and this is one of those cases-- Primarily because unless the systemic problems are resolved which contributed to how terribly this incident was mishandled, it is hard to say if any changes or improvements in safety will ever effectively be made or implemented on a larger scale. Thank you very much for another excellent video; You have done an excellent job in bringing this tragedy to attention. I especially appreciate the respect with which you treat all of these cases, but especially such a heartbreaking one such as this, in such a well-researched and thorough manner.

[@Shinzon23]

The main issue with this disaster is that the kids involved, due to the way Korean culture is are way too accepting of authority figures telling them what to do and following those orders, even - in this case - unto death. It's a failing on so many different levels, cultura,l personal, and social; if those had been kids from the US, UK, Canada, or even most of the EU, they would have likely said "fk this, I'm heading to the lifeboats"

[@Anavirable]

Terrible. They didn't even have the decency to just abandon those kids, instead they actively sabotaged their opportunity to escape by pretending there was a rescue in progress. This wasn't manslaughter, it was mass murder.

[@RobinTheBot]

Thank you. Well said.

[@jaybee4118]

@@Shinzon23 yeah, but the rules aren’t normally so faulty. There’s plenty of kids in the UK, US, Canada, etc who get themselves and others killed with idiotic behaviour. Sometimes following the advice will get you in trouble, but it’s a lot less likely to than not following the advice of people who have experience. It’s not the kids fault they followed the advice and it doesn’t make them wrong or stupid because they died this time.

[@jamesyu9926]

Ship’s cafeteria worker pulled dozens of students out into the open but overcame by tilting ship taking on more water. She was only 22 and one of true heroes that day. She gave her life jacket to a student. She sacrificed her safety and life for someone else while a high ranking government employee was watching and talking on the phone from the helicopter above entire time instead of throwing down a rope ladder. Enuf said.

[@aegisofhonor]

from everything I read about this, if proper protocols were made, 99% of the passengers should have been saved, the ship took a full hour to list past a point where most passengers could easily be rescued, plenty of time to get almost all passengers off the ship.

[@zenoblues7787]

It's especially frustrating because ships often tip over much faster and there is little time to prepare. The crew of this ship had far longer than most crew to evacuate and organize the rescue. They wasted all that time and made no effort to save anyone except themselves. Almost every passenger died in a situation in which they could have easily been saved.

[@HydrogenAlpha]

Especially considering how able bodied the passengers would have been. I vaguely knew about this event, but I had absolutely no idea just how tragic and infuriating it was.

[@kateemma22]

Even if the kids were just told to fend for themselves they would have broken loose like those kids right at the end did, jumped in the water, and been rescued by the wonderful fishermen that came to their rescue. There was no reason anyone had to die.

[@mclohan]

100%!could have survived. The video shows boats and choppers there. Most rescue ships have those inflatable octagon shaped life boats for emergency situations. Even if these boats didn’t have the room there’s no reason to let the kids stay on board and sink with the ship. Let them out and swim/float as long as possible until more help comes. This type of tragedy should never have happened. Unnecessary loss of life

[@haikalhadzik7744]

corruption

[@s_spiritstar]

I saw a separate documentary of this case, and how when the Korean gov stopped looking for people, actual divers from cities nearby took it upon themselves to rescue the bodies that were in there seabed. They were old, traumatized, and horrified. Very rarely did they pull a body to the surface, but when they did, they were always in shock.

[@aoki6332]

this is one of the worse kind of tragedy this was 100% avoidable yet nothing was done to save these people something that should have been a small accident resulting in the lost of a ship end up costing hundred of lives for incompetence and corruption

[@harambejr22]

Some civilian divers committed suicide shortly after cause of the memories haunting them from what they saw in the boat and dragging kids bodies out

[@SenatorNorman]

@@harambejr22 just thinking of what horrible scenes they may have.saw in there is already haunting me, but, god, imagine actually having to go through that.

[@coltengrothe3098]

​@@harambejr22 Kim Chon Song (I believe that's the name) is one of them. his words were heart wrenching :(

[@littleteemot2988]

i heard that some committed suicide out of the guilt that they couldn't save more,,,it's truly heart breaking

[@DeborahRosen99]

As a former Sailor, I have no words to express my fury and contempt for a captain or crew so derelict in their duty that they abandoned their posts without doing everything in their power to see to the safety and survival of the passengers.

[@kevinmencer3782]

Tell me sailor, how hard would it have been for one of those mates or officers to, I dunno, run down to the passenger cabin area and make the announcement from there if they really thought their PA was broken?

[@DeborahRosen99]

@@kevinmencer3782 It wouldn't have been difficult at all - especially since they had already abandoned their posts. The sea plays no favorites.

[@morgan4574]

It's really unfortunate that the US Navy trusted the Korean coast guard and wasn't informed of the true situation. I feel like if the US Navy had known the true situation, they could have taken over unilaterally and quickly done something and told the Korean Coast guard to kick rocks (and therefore the government too). The Korean government wouldn't be able to do shit about it

[@admiralpaco507]

There are an uncomfortably large number of "So-and-so did not follow this order" or "Refused to do so" in this disaster.

[@alqualonde2998]

I can understand refusing to board a capsized ship without necessary prep but everything before that is unforgivable.

[@kal9001]

@@alqualonde2998 The second mate was asked to issue the evac order, and what... he just stood there and stared at the wall... If that mate was recused, and isn't in prison for the rest of his life along with probably dozen or more others that just sat there and allowed this to unfold then... well... I'm just a guy on the internet so nothing I guess...

[@grmpEqweer]

@@seeleagent They may have arrived too late to board, yeah. Most of the crew were just terrible, though.

[@Morpheen999]

We need to talk about all the people who just "listened" even when they probably had a feeling inside that they should be getting to the top deck ready to abandon ship... Don't ignore those feelings no matter who is telling you what to do.. You can't just be a sheep all the time

[@ratemisia]

@@Morpheen999 Following your gut and defying the elder authority figure who is giving you explicit instructions to stay put isn't exactly a huge thing in Korean culture, to be fair... most, if not all of those kids on the boat as well as the teachers and staff onboard were likely raised from birth to believe and obey the orders that people in positions of power and authority give you, and as much as we might like to argue otherwise, that idea most certainly has an effect on how you may behave in a life-or-death situation when someone in a position of power and authority is giving faulty advice.

[@ArchTeryx00]

Yeah, the Sewol disaster was one of the most infuriating stories I ever have had the displeasure to read. All those kids were simply left to drown, even though they had HOURS of time to evacuate and rescue was literally a few miles away. Nearly 100% of the people on the ferry could have been saved, but everyone in authority from the President on down to the ship's captain were far more concerned with saving face - or their own skins - than saving lives. The scene on the ferry was so horrific one of the civilian divers tasked with evidence and body recovery killed himself afterward. Only good part to it AT ALL was that the President was impeached and summarily rode out of town on a rail, though it took a massive amount of activism and protest by the parents - and in South Korea that is NOT at all easy! - to finally turf her out. The wife of the diver who committed suicide was one of those that testified at the impeachment hearing and she had his video footage to back her testimony of what it looked like in there. This wasn't a tragedy, This was mass murder by malign neglect and depraved indifference. The President shouldn't have just been thrown from office. She should have been thrown in jail for life. And the same goes for the captain AND the ferry owners.

[@gordon9173]

They don't deserve to live.. 💔💔I can't sleep whenever I watch about this story💔💔They have everything to saves their lives but they neglected it intentionally 😭So heartless.. They are not human beings but rather a monster..

[@scottjohnson9799]

I didn't even think about what the divers must have gone through. My parents knew a guy who had been a Navy diver in WW2, and had been sent into some of the sunken ships at Pearl Harbor during the salvage efforts. He was in one of those old-timey suits with the big glass bell helmet and air hose. What gave him nightmares for the rest of his life was that as he moved through the ship he naturally created a wake behind him, which made the bodies appear to follow him.

[@betamax1091]

Agree. It was reported that the president was widely under the influence of her childhood friend, the one who solicited bribes for them both, and that was why she was strangely unavailable as this tragedy unfolded. Korean gov made some excuse as to what the president was doing but it was disputed and it still remains a mystery to this day.

[@Veldtian1]

They should've all been tortured to within an inch of their lives then been kept alive and limbless for 10 years, then dropped off in the middle of the Pacific Ocean wearing survival suits so they'd stay alive for as long as possible.

[@darwinjina]

If only one of the onsite witnesses were able to reach outside the chain of command.

[@thesisypheanjournal1271]

I was an English teacher at a Korean public school when this happened. I can't imagine what it was like for the staff and students at the school. I kept looking around my school, feeling spooked -- like an entire grade might just vanish. When the hallways were quiet I almost needed to be reassured that they were all there. There was this haunting thought, "Where are my students? Where are my students?" I'd want to cry for those left behind in the affected school. I knew at the time the Sewol sinking was a total clusterf***, but now I learn that it was an even worse cockup than I'd known.

[@mangrove]

I lived in Gwangju at the time, and I was awakened to the helicopters over my apartment building, rushing towards Mokpo. I went to work with the news that all had been rescued, but it wasn't long that we learned that it was a lie. I think we all went through those same thoughts that you described, about the silence and the dread that we felt.

[@LessTrustMoreTruth]

Lived in Incheon in Yeongi-do during this time as an English teacher. I remember still coming down from my apartment that morning to see everyone staring silently at this spectacle on the TV.

[@officernealy]

I had a Korean roommate living in the US with me during the year of the accident who I'm still very close too. Normally whenever I'd return to my dorm after class, I'd normally find him doing pull-ups or some form of exercise in the living area but on this day, he wasn't there. I faintly heard Korean coming from his room so I knocked and entered to see what was up. He was sitting at his desk watching Korean news on his laptop, arms crossed, silent, and tears running down his face. That's when I saw the Sewol upside down for the first time. My roommate loved to talk but despite my best efforts to cheer him up, he didn't say a word for the rest of the day, let alone move.

[@constitutionalUSA]

"All the survivors had been rescued". Yeah, all that were rescued survived. What a revelation

[@j2simpso]

If more passengers ignored the advice to stay put and jumped in to the water with their life jackets on I wonder how many more would’ve been rescued? Yes the water was cool but you wouldn’t die from it instantly. And if the coast guard or other ships see someone floating in the water guess who gets priority? That’s right the person in the water not the one on the ship!

[@alum202]

@@j2simpso the water was cold as hell, if they at least stood around the hull of the ship, on the side as it went 90 degrees, at least then, they are more stable area to stand on.

[@s_spiritstar]

@@j2simpso they thoughht the authority would help them, and unfortunately, they didn’t. The advice they listened to killed them.

[@kkandsims4612]

For real tho the idiots in charge jail jail jail jail

[@JDsVarietyChannel]

This was a hard watch. But thank-you for your attention to detail.

[@foreverpinkf.7603]

Just unbelievable: incompetence, lack of maintenance, lack of knowledge and regulations, disastrous chain of command, no plan what do do and much more in a first world country and from all sides including government.

[@gorillaau]

So much incompetence at all levels of goverment and the shipping company itself.

[@chadro_g1145]

As an ex-fireman, this is so difficult to hear. Your job, your duty, your responsibility is to save lives. If it means you put your life at risk, or give it up to save another, even if it's just one person, you do it. Without hesitation. My wife, son, family and friends knew this was what I signed up for. While concerned every time that radio went off, they couldn't have been prouder. Where I lived were my people, friends and family, so why wouldn't I be willing to risk my life for theirs, and lay it down for them if necessary? I live in a tourist area of the Great Smoky Mountains, and many calls would involve people I didn't know. I would gladly do the same for them, just as I would do for these kids. I simply cannot understand this. What cowards! You search every inch of anything you are sent to search. These guys faced a leaning ship and maybe some water and darkness, depending on the deck. We use to search houses on fire, on our hands and knees crawling with one hand feeling and the other either holding the hose, or touching either the left or right wall for orientation, or holding the guy in fronts ankle if you were the second guy. That way two people could be feeling with their spare hand as you went along. You hands are in gloves so thick it's hard to move them, but you still have to be able to tell what your touching for sure. We did all this in darkness that can't be explained other than to say it's like being down in a cave and turning the lights off. Fires put off some much black smoke, you can't see your hand in front of your face even with your flashlight on and being right next to flames. All while feeling the heat from the flames through your turnout gear. That feels like wearing about 3 sets of coveralls at once. You have zero skin exposed to prevent burns as long as possible. And to top it off, you're trying to control your breathing to use as little air as possible off your tank (we routinely were testing to see how long we could make a 30 minute tank last, you had to make at least 2 hours to stay, the best I ever saw was 3.5 hours), your breathing through a full face mask that has positive pressure, so you have to push hard to exhale. Oh, you try to not crawl right into a fire or get cut off by one all at the same time, and you're constantly worried about collapse or a floor giving way, or the hot water heater blowing up or blasting through floors and roof and not being in it's way. Firemen/Firewomen do this willingly, and that's not counting what you see at car wrecks, drowning, or dealing with brush fires. Yet, these bastards wouldn't do anything more than they did?!? Death penalties should be imposed on all parties responsible and the ones that refused to do their damn jobs! You might think that's harsh, but they did it to those kids without the benefit of a trial. Honestly, they wouldn't have to do that to me, I couldn't live with myself if I did what these jokers did.

[@Mo.1988]

Well put!!

[@miha3847]

😢😢😢😢😢

[@cavemanlovesmoke4394]

A true volunteer eh? I'm east tenn born and raised (so I'm guessing pigeon forge/Gatlinburg? ) Yeah I really can't understand how the cowards left these hundreds of kids to die a horrible fate that could have been prevented. Smh hopefully God will remember this and punish those cowards

[@thereal_TwentySeven]

I agree, death penalty for all those at fault.

[@catsantos353]

🫡❤️‍🩹❤️‍🔥💘🧑🏽‍🚒 pure bravery. Thank u for taking the time to write this

[@jrmckim]

I have tried to watch this a least 6 times in 2 days. I finally got passed 7 minutes and my heart sank. I worked with someone who lost their daughter on it. He told me once that worst part was hearing she was alive to only hear she wasn't. His family had waited hours to hear if she was okay. When word came that she was they were so happy. My coworker said he knew she'd be okay.. he taught her to swim and she was an amazing swimmer. Then it came crumbling down. I lost my daughter at 2 months from sids. I couldn't imagine someone saying she's alive then finding out she had passed. We bonded over the loss of our kids. We were both English teachers in Nagoya Japan in 2019. We were the first to lose our jobs during covid because we were foreigners. I haven't spoken to him since 2021. I will check on him today.

[@Shaggyshadric]

An infuriating chain of cowardice, incompetence, and negligence. What a waste, I hope they crucified everyone involved.

[@Delibro]

This, and not an inch less, is the right answer to this accident. I'm speechless on anger and rage.

[@stoyanb.1668]

Unfortunately while some may have been thrown in jail, the system did not experience a change. Were just waiting for the next ship to sink. This is a systematic and cultural problem doubtful it will change for decades

[@KitsuneVoss]

US Coast Guard needs to teach a lesson to the Korean Coast Guard, "You have to go out, but you don't have to come back!"

[@Bald_Cat2007]

It always makes me proud to see any ship (from small craft to big bulk carries) heading to provide any and whatever assistance in these types of tragedies. That's true seamanship right there

[@ingvarhallstrom2306]

The way I see it, the captain and crew sacrificed the passengers to try to save their own reputation. This is mass murder.

[@peryutubanduniawi]

sorry, i seem to not get it. what kinda reputation they want to save? they just want to save their own live. they told everyone to not move so the ship sink slower thus their chance to saved increase

[@llavender.m]

I remember watching this on the news as it happened. When they started showing the texts and videos that the students sent their parents as the ship capsized I had to look away. It took seven years to look again. The documentation of these kids' terror and the callousness that was shown for their lives is incredibly hard to swallow

[@McSnezzly]

When the ferry was FINALLY resurfaced after months, they wouldn’t even let the parents watch. Eventually they gave the parents the children’s phones- in many cases, it was the only surviving item as the body wasn’t recovered.

[@briankoski817]

I remember the day this happened too. I didn't realize the amount of incompetence from everyone involved though. All of this could have been prevented. The incompetence is f'n disgusting.

[@bobbyrayofthefamilysmith24]

The utter callousness and disregard for their lives is a common feature of governments around the world. It's one of the reasons I find it truly shocking and bizarre people wholeheartedly trust their government without question.

[@AK474000]

This is one of those stories you hear about and get mad at but once you dig into the details and see just how utterly incompetent, negligent, and cowardice strung down the entire situation, it's unbelievably baffling and beyond infuriating.

[@NoName-sb9tp]

One of my Korean friend said he would have been on the ferry had he not choose to go abroad instead of enrolling to the school. He had lost a lot of friends, and many are his childhood friends. He’s fine now, and already get pass the incident.

[@lyrahostetter6006]

This is astounding, dizzying in how awful it is. Your account conveys such a sense of outrage while being meticulously detailed, measured, and respectful--a balancing act that documentarians rarely pull off so harmoniously as you. Thank you!

[@BrickImmortar]

I appreciate you saying that Lyra, thank you

[@marhawkman303]

@@BrickImmortar I gotta say, it REALLY adds depth when you methodically explain how f-ed up something was while having just enough of an inflection in your voice to let the hearer hear how you feel.

[@joshuakuehn]

@@BrickImmortar this is S-tier journalism and documentation of a tragedy. Engaging, informative, and gut-wrenching. Happily subbed and wishing you success!

[@bruticus0875]

I watched a show on this that included all the radio conversations. The conversations worrying about credit, media attention, and inability to understand the situation. A little while later, I heard that Korea wanted to "export their culture". Made you grind your teeth.

[@Jame5man]

To sit there and refuse to do anything proactive and take a crew, that is clearly entirely incompetent, at their word while hundreds are at risk of death is just disgusting. All the while worrying about your image and reputation. As shitty as things may seem in Canada and the US right now, at least if your trapped in a fire, flood, hurricane, sinking ship, or any other manner of disaster, You know that someone is going to try their hardest to get you out alive. I think we should export that to Korea before they send us any of their culture

[@kimchipig]

"Face" is a very overwhelming concept in Korean society. The kind of behaviour in his case was not surprising.

[@arc00ta]

@@kimchipigIts similar in most asian countries, they would rather die than look bad. Admitting mistakes is not something much of the leadership will do. Add to that a fairly rigid adherence to class structure and "chain of command" you get situations like this over and over again. There was a similar case in japan where that 747 lost its rudder and crashed into a mountain, there were 20-odd survivors which is pretty much a miracle for a place crash like that. The USMC had helicopters on a training mission in the vicinity but the government refused to let them help, in the end almost everyone that survived the crash froze to death on top of the mountain, and again the government response was deny deny deny divert attention and deny some more.

[@MB-en3ij]

@@arc00ta I have to disagree with this, I'm Asian and I'm still baffled up to this date, I don't think any other Asian countries would behave this way, not even Japan. Believe me, we wouldn't die just to not look bad, that norm is just so wrong. This is just Korea, that country normalizes cosmetic surgeries, other Asians can't even be bothered to spend on fashionable clothing.

[@desertrose0027]

@Stella Hoenheim With the Costa Concordia you also had the coast guard who ripped into the captain for abandoning the ship. There was a lot of blame to go around on that ship too, but at least the government didn't actively participate in the cover up.

[@barrag3463]

Sewol fills me with much sadness and anger. I remember in one documentary it was shown that some passengers were not only still alive but able to use their phones and take pictures even after the ferry had capsized entirely, capturing scenes of people in rooms looking out the window, seeing light through the water. The SK Gov't would not only continue to delay any rescue effort on their part, but would for months afterwards deny even citizens the ability to make any effort to even go to or near the wreck.

[@M2ofEMMM]

Having already watched Reignbot's video on this tragedy, it doesn't get any easier hearing about it the second time around. What really gets me is that listening to safety instructions in 99% of crises is the key to as many people as possible making it out alive and unharmed - but then you have a situation like this that completely undermines that principle. All those kids and chaperones died because they did what is the right thing to do in almost any other emergency scenario: They listened to the people who were supposed to be the experts, who were supposed to know the ship and the best evacuation procedures and were supposed to be doing their absolute best to use that presumed expertise to save more people than a passenger with no maritime knowledge could. In the end a "Passengers save yourselves and each other" approach ended up being what saved lives, and that is *never* supposed to happen.

[@TracyA123]

Such a tragedy that should've never happened. This was difficult to watch. So many of those parents responded to their child's text by telling them to do as they were told. Those parents are so haunted by that. I can't even begin to imagine how horrid losing a child would be. Very well done video sir! This is a great subject for a multi video project.

[@TracyA123]

@@jfangm True. It's hard to imagine that now, as a parent, I would my tell my child to ignore the instructions but I definitely would. You can feel how devastated and guilty those parents feel. It's horrible.

[@jamesharding3459]

@@TracyA123 I'd like to imagine when, if ever, I have kids of my own that I'll tell them to exercise initiative and help themselves, orders be damned.

[@TracyA123]

@@jamesharding3459 👍

[@PrezVeto]

@@jamesharding3459 Unfortunately the best action isn't always that simple. Crushes can result, for example, from everyone scrambling without organization.

[@pendlera2959]

​@@TracyA123 For this situation, that would have been the best thing to do, but most emergencies aren't managed as badly as this one was. Usually the people running the rescue know what they're doing and need people to listen to them for the rescue to be effective. Imagine getting the news that your kid not only died but did so impairing the rescue of others because they didn't follow instructions. Imagine all the other parents finding out their kids died because you told your kid to break orders.

[@change_your_oil_regularly4287]

I've seen a lot of stuff on this. The captain and crew.... I have no words. No words I can put on here anyway. Absolutely heartbreaking. A simple "abandon ship" or simply not telling them all to stay where they were could have saved hundreds of lives.

[@user-kc1tf7zm3b]

You would never see a similar disaster in Australia, much less in Sydney. Sydney Ferry captains are the most professional, exacting and diligent captains, where passenger safety is their overriding concern. Period. 🇦🇺 🦘

[@grmpEqweer]

Just ordering them to get their lifegear and assemble on deck. 😭

[@bobbyrayofthefamilysmith24]

He took lessons from captain coward of the Costa concordia

[@Lyubimov89]

@@bobbyrayofthefamilysmith24 hell, Schetino is more competent than that. And Schetino is very incompetent.

[@MayorGoldieWilson825]

Looks like you had a little over 40 something words to say😉

[@armada1290]

I still vividly remember that morning. I was a highschool student back then, heard this news around lunch time claiming "all's been rescued". I thought it wasn't a big dill. When the class ended, and the homeroom teacher came in for some noticements, she was crying. One of my friend lost his cousin from this. Althogh the highschool that the victims went was located in a different city , it was relatively close, considering it being at the outskirts of the Seoul metropolitan area. This tragedy probably will be at the highest rank when you ask a korean aged around early 20s to the late 20s 'what incident do you remeber the most in your lifetime'. It's pretty heartbreaking thinking that our parent generation would reply 'sampoong department store collapse.'

[@zachhoward9099]

Did that incident obliterate Koreans of your ages faith in the Korean government?

[@measlyfurball37]

Oh boy, I knew this one would piss me off, but I underestimated how much. You're the first of the engineering disaster channels I follow to attempt to cover this one- props to you. It's one hell of a difficult one to talk about. You handle it very well.

[@updatedotexe]

Which other engineering disaster channels are there?

[@measlyfurball37]

@@updatedotexe I could recommend a couple! Fascinating Horror has some great ones, Practical Engineering has some good ones, Plainly Difficult has a ton of them, and Bright Sun Films has a few really great shipwreck ones that I really enjoy. For my fill of airplane crashes, I always check out Admiral_Cloudberg's plane crash series on Reddit. They're the best out there.

[@updatedotexe]

@@measlyfurball37 In terms of aviation channel, I can recommend Mentor Pilot.

[@lisapt6702]

Incompetence that endangers the public is unforgivable. Willful incompetence coupled with whatever sick kind of ass covering was going on here is beyond evil. Those kids were not even given the opportunity to fight for their lives since they were ordered to stay trapped in their rooms.

[@goawayleavemealone2880]

The ass covering after the Marchoness disaster was also pretty vile... events like this make me so angry. But heroes like those teachers and fishermen, who did as much as they could to rescue people do make me proud.

[@melasn9836]

I had heard about this, but I never knew about the depths of incompetence with the crew, the rescue, the LYING TO FAMILIES ABOUT THEIR KIDS' DEATHS... Thank you for shining more of a light on this horrible tragedy, since it seemed to be almost entirely blown off in the Western media.

[@McSnezzly]

It gets worse. They didn’t even bother to recover the bodies. Civilian scuba divers did the work, even while being told not to. One hero ended up killing him self because he couldn’t handle the horror of seeing the dead. In one documentary, one of the scuba divers says he imagines seagull calls to be the screams of the children.

[@cavemanlovesmoke4394]

How is it our fault ? "The west" you are more upset at?? Wow

[@mechengr1731]

The lying wasn't just to parents. It sounds like people at the scene were lying. Also, the captain saying "no, the 1 helicopter can't save everyone" was so baffling. GET MORE HELICOPTERS THEN!! Don't just leave people to drown waiting for YOUR orders

[@kevinlyons4545]

Just joined today and I am blown away by this man's knowledge. I am a Naval Artichtect and this gentleman's explanations are on point 👉. He could teach at any university. So impressed. Glad I joined. Currently going through chemotherapy for stage 4 brain cancer and I am binge watching his videos. This is the best pain medicine to date. If you receive this comment, please reach out to me. I would like to talk with you while I can. Thanks again and keep up the unbelievable work. As long as I am around you have a loyal viewer.

[@toni5431]

Sending healing thoughts your way Kevin. Fight with everything you have and refuse to let it beat you! My thoughts are with you xx

[@DynastyInferno]

Hey kevin, how are things?

[@lostmyhead8220]

Hey man, hope you’re doing ok right now

[@picturethis8611]

Hope everything is going well

[@calvertmorris2420]

Stay strong friend

[@gavriloking5637]

I work in a Korean School and the disorder is astounding. I don’t understand why Korean organization is so bad. The biggest problem is the total lack of communication and written rules. Decisions are all made by fiat with political influence and most never make sense. The school has been successfully sued multiple times as well. The problems of this video are not just of this tragic story but of Korean culture at large.

[@kimchipig]

I was a university professor in Korea for many years. Korea is the most Confucian society in the world. Young people unconditionally do what an older person tells them to do. In the case of this tragedy, the kids who disobeyed their seniors were the ones who lived. The entire investigation was bogus and Korea's only female president was tossed in jail, as it were her fault. She was sacrificed but nothing in Korea changed. Something like this is bound to happen again since there really isn't much of a "safety culture" in Korea.

[@bruticus0875]

I wondered about this too. I would have thought all those responsible from the bottom up would be hauled before a committee. But it seems they just went after the president and the crew. The voices of the men on those audio tapes I heard are the ones that need jail time.

[@vixen4327]

@@bruticus0875 forget jail. Throw them overboard into the frigid water and leave them like they did those poor students 😠

[@user-ol5bj4dm2v]

@Meghan Yeah I thought that she wasn't much liked regardless of the Sewol tragedy.

[@capmidnite]

Park Geun He wasn't put in jail because of the Sewol tragedy. She was impeached because of corruption and influence peddling.

[@user-kc1tf7zm3b]

Backward Confucian and Korean culture lead to the 6 August 1997 Korean Air Flight 801 tragedy where 229 lives were lost.

[@Morganna_Nikolaevna]

The New Yorker has a great summary video of this disaster as well. The moral of the story is this: If the boat is sinking, stay above deck. Don't get trapped below deck in a sinking ship.

[@lm7bird680]

Capsizing ship is probably my worst fear, nobody could tell me to stay put if the ship was listing that bad

[@knockeledup]

I’ve seen that video. They covered it really well!

[@kimchipig]

The moral of the story is how we shouldn't unconditionally obey someone simply because he (and it was a HE) is older.

[@ryano.5149]

When in doubt, grab a life jacket, and get to an outside deck on the high side!

[@McSnezzly]

@@RCAvhstape to be fair, the stairs were destroyed so many on the top levels were trapped anyway

[@Alex462047]

The crew of the coast guard ship refused an order to go and rescue survivors. Can somebody please explain to me what is that? Refused? Not only is that their job, but people are in danger of their lives and it was possible to save them. Children, what is more. I can't even register that, it's inhuman.

[@ikaruseijin01]

The incompetence exhibited throughout this disaster was breathtaking. I am filled with such frustration and anger... and I'm just some random person. I can't imagine how any of the families and survivors feel.

[@ED-es2qv]

I remember seeing something else about this, and there was audio of the coast guard being told not to do anything until a “camera ship” can get there so the higher ups can see it and decide what to do. I also got the impression that the higher ups thought everyone was evacuated before it tipped over.

[@peryutubanduniawi]

been working there and that is exactly what the major mentality of the people at my workplace. saving their own face, every single time

[@johncarter4956]

And in the aftermath. All Chaehonjin Marine and the Government did to "apologize" for the incident are just these 2 factions trying to shift blame onto one another for 3 years, in public and on television. Korean authorities are just horrible man. Everybody only cares about their face and their survivalbility in the hegemony system.

[@samspencer7765]

From what I've learned, if you're in a ship disaster, get out on deck opposite lean. If conditions on deck are dangerous, get to the highest interior deck, opposite to the direction of list and stay by an exterior door. You do not want to be trapped by a submerged corridor in total darkness as you list further and further.

[@GraemeSPa]

40 years in the merchant navy and I learned a few things. One is that fire and boat drills always go perfectly but real fires never go the way you planned. The alarm is not just for fires - we had one crewman pressed between steel plates in the storeroom - the general alarm was sounded and everyone - including some of those trying to relieve the pressure on the unfortunate man - went to don helmets and lifejackets and proceed to their station as per standing orders. The man died while the Master was ticking off names on the muster lists. I have been in storms and hurricanes and many times thought she would never right after a heavy wave. I have never been on a passenger ship or overnight on a ferry, but I know one thing - know where your lifejacket is and know how to get out of the the accommodation block. Go upward and go out - head to the highest point and get out on deck. RIP these children who died because of other people's professional ignorance.

[@Iexapro]

I remember seeing this on the news a few months prior to my HS graduation. I felt a deep sadness that the kids on board were robbed of the chance to experience the joys of coming of age. Likewise everyone who loved them weren’t given chance to see them grow or realize their dreams. Thank you for covering this, I hope the families of everyone who were left behind can find peace.

[@briarrose8154]

I’ve been begging all my favorite crime/tragedy/industrial incident explainer channels to talk about this event! I don’t know why most ppl don’t talk about it & why it didn’t get that much coverage. Thank you for taking it on & doing such an excellent job 💜

[@jordanledoux197]

It's kind of mind boggling to be honest. This event basically directly resulted in the president of the 10th largest economy in the world being deposed by popular revolt. You'd think more people would talk about it.

[@historytank5673]

It’s probably very difficult to talk about

[@AlexBsSecret]

families still mourn, a lot of korean people still suffer PTSD, it was very traumatizing for many students in the country and some people involved even took their own lives, it's not an easy part of recent korean history to talk about, especially since the majority of the victims were children, hundreds of them, and it happened because of incompetence and willful negligence.

[@gladitsnotme]

I vividly remember when this happened. I couldn't wrap my head around it. I was so horrified, and it takes a lot to horrify me in this world. Those poor kids were murdered in cold blood bc the captain was busy banging a chick instead of doing his job. Literally every single adult there from crew to rescuers failed to such a high degree that no normal person would even believe this could happen. Vile is the perfect word. Thank you for doing a series on Sewol, it should never be forgotten.

[@raeoverhere923]

I think the accident you're thinking of is the Costa Concordia, that's the one where the captain let his mistress on deck.

[@gladitsnotme]

@@raeoverhere923 No, I'm thinking of Sewol. This captain, Joonseok, had his pants down because he was in the middle of bumping uglies.

[@tiryaclearsong421]

​@@raeoverhere923Technically the Concordia captain wasn't having sex during the accident. Her presence was investigated as a potential distraction.

[@Bluepancho]

In a lot of Korean disasters it feels like the best option is to do the opposite of what the authorities tell you to do. Similar things happenned with the Daegu subway fire or that mall that collapsed in the 90s

[@jamesyu9926]

Since Korean War, this was the 5th such tragedy and similar number of passengers drowned. This was more tragic because most of them were students and at the mercy of dysfunctional government employees. After each mishap including Sewol, they made no effort in maritime safety and training. Coast Guard police are appointed for the name sake, to collect paychecks and pensions afterwards. They are equipped for the show only. This mentality flows from the top government leader to the bottom. For two decades Sewol and her sister ship were used knowing well they are owned by a cult leader who was an embezzler and murderer. He killed 75 of his church member in 1987. He was released after serving only 4 years. Sewol often loaded 50-75% over its capacity to make more money for the cult leader. But government inspectors always closed eyes in lieu of bribe money. Most of the business is done with favors in the form of kick backs, bribery and political gifts. It’s the norm. While Sewol sank it brought up the sickness of Korean society and the government.

[@Vespyr_]

The US should pull out of Korea, and let them fend for themselves.

[@bcc5701]

@@Vespyr_ Korea at large is a fine country. No need to throw the baby out with the bath water.

[@JosieJOK]

THANK YOU for covering this, and for allotting enough time to give it full justice. There are relatively few documentaries (in English) about this tragedy, and even fewer that achieve this level of detail.

[@riotintheair]

This tragedy was really hard to watch... A lot of disasters feature mistakes, some cowardice, and poor oversight in the run up to them, but it's a really different thing when that bleeds into the response to the unfolding tragedy and includes those who normally pick up the pieces and make the best of the worst and usually save a lot of lives in the process. The Costa Concordia disaster had a similar level of cowardice and incompetence from the senior officers on board, but the Italian Coast Guard and government employees at all levels performed admirably and courageously throughout the disaster and it made a huge difference in the outcome and in how gut wrenching it is to read about the disaster. Thanks for making this, and I can understand how draining this topic must be to research.

[@nikinsoo6668]

I have lived in Korea since May of 2013 and was teaching at an academy when this happened. A year and a half afterwards I started teaching High Schoolers at a private school and I remember how stressed all of the teachers were when that year's seniors took their trip to Jeju, even though they flew instead of taking a ferry. Every year the seniors continued making the trip by plane instead of ferry, but every year it felt like we were holding our breath from the time they left until they arrived on Jeju, and from the time they left Jeju until they arrived back in Seoul. My husband is Korean, and at the time he was actually traveling, but after he got back he took part in many of the demonstrations after this. In 2015 we moved closer to Seoul and we visited the makeshift memorial near the blue house (Korean white house) at least once a year until we moved to the countryside. Its been 9 years. This is still very much on everyone's minds. My husband went on a cruise in the US in 2017 and was understandably nervous for a good part of it. He and I love documentaries, but we haven't been able to listen to one on this yet. It still feels so raw. And unfortunately the corruption that caused this still lives on. If you have money, you can get away with almost anything. 2018- Miryand hospital fire killed 41 due to lack of fire sprinklers 2021- Gwangju building collapsed during demolition killed 9 people on a bus next to the building resulting in blame on only 4 even though the parent company had had problems in the past and even killed 6 workers just 7 months later due to another construction accident. 2022- Itaewon crowd crush tragedy resulting in 159 deaths to date and the blame is going squarely to the police officers, not the people in charge or the people who decided there should be more officers diverted to guard the president's house (over 150) instead of crowd control in Itaewon (less than 50) or the ones who decided to focus those officers on drugs instead of crowd control If you ever decide to tackle any of those, please let me or my husband know. The translated articles you can find will be the ones "approved" while the ones more indepth can be harder to understand if you only have google translate.

[@A.H.M.K]

That captain had 40 years of experience and he didn’t have it in him to even attempt to save those people! That is unbelievable

[@iainmalcolm9583]

Good detailed coverage of a massive failure. After Sampoong, thought the S.Koreans might have been better. Not much honour on display from the crew & officials.

[@CurmudgeonExtraordinaire]

Ex-Navy guy here... I've been on a few cruise ships and roll-on roll-off ferries since my time in the Navy and none of them have particularly impressed me with the watertight integrity of the compartments above the waterline... Don't know about the compartments below decks since passengers do not have access to them...

[@wooba1207]

Imagine checking absolutely nowhere and then going "All good here! Off we sail!" while hundreds of teenagers drown. I hope the conscious of all the incompetent, corrupt people involved is forever haunted by what they let happen.

[@tomsoden1738]

I've been living in Korea since 2009 as a teacher. This incident was heartbreaking. The tragic loss of life alone and everything that was uncovered afterward just adds to the pain. I remember being at work when the news broke. I went to the memorial at Seoul city hall, there were parents and other family members there lighting candles. I bawled my eyes out. I still find it so difficult to watch this video. Thank you for making it so tastefully. 감사합니다.

[@skip485]

I'm disgusted at all the gross negligence that led to all these untimely deaths. My heart breaks for the parents.

[@norgeek]

Oh, wow. That's... infuriating. I can't think of any penalty or punishment sufficient for anyone involved in this, directly or indirectly. They have blood on their hands, all of them, from the bridge crew and the "responding" coast guard forces to the owners, certificate issuers and the national leadership.

[@Shinzon23]

I can think of one; stick the crew and captain in a room with the parents, turn off the cameras and microphones, and leave that entire building clear of people for about 3 hours, then bring in the doctors and medics and the body bags, and have a crematorium ready.

[@bobbyrayofthefamilysmith24]

Just remember to trust the government and corporations and always believe whatever they tell you because they never lie.. Ever

[@gabe-po9yi]

President: “Everything is being done. Every resource activated.” Chief of Coast Guard: “500 divers allocated to rescue operation.” Parents there looking at submerged ferry: 0 divers, 0 rescue equipment, 0 rescue operation.

[@miha3847]

FR , what a shame

[@Liberty_or_Ded]

The Coast Guard cutters just floating there looking at the ship capsizing and just being like "Meh." And then being ordered "GO ABOARD AND RESCUE THEM!" and them just shrugging and going "Nahhhh. Nah we're not gonna. We ARE heroes though, we're doing everything we can." is just peak "This is why you don't wait for the authorities to save you."

[@corvinredacted]

I watch a lot of disaster videos covering highly distressing content but this incident is one of the few that get me so viscerally upset I have a hard time watching. The footage of the ship just sitting there, filled with people waiting to die for absolutely no reason is just sickening.

[@DynastyInferno]

This story made me cold turkey these videos for a while, and it takes a lot for me to do that. It was just a lot to swallow and I felt nauseated more than once. I'm a parent myself and I cannot fathom my rage, despair, and grief if I were one of these parents and my son was on that ship. Thank you for covering this, Brick. None of these children needed to die.

[@lilyLovesStories]

This was so heartbreaking. I actually found out about it when I watched a mv of BTS singing Spring Day & the Sewol Tragedy is one of the explanations for the song. Some kpop idols have the yellow ribbon 🎗 tatted on them in remembrance of the students who died. The fact that the government lied to the families makes it that much worse. I saw a video that some kids were filming from inside the ferry. One called his mother to tell her that he loved her cause he knew he was going to die. That few minutes of the video made me cry so much. So sad.

[@riothead1240]

I come from a maritime military family. My grandpa was a aviotor in wwii, became a Rear Admiral in the Coast Guard and I served in the Army myself. The cowardice and dereliction of duty on nearly all authority parts disgusted me to my core.

[@chantalgroot4275]

When you prioritize saving face over saving lives :(

[@alum202]

i never understood how letting kids die saves face, how exactly does it save face? I think it saves more face actually fucking rescuing kids than not doing so.

[@DM-qp7do]

If you're just now learning about the Sewol prepare to get angry. They purposely waited for all to be dead before making a decision. Little did they know the ship would stay afloat longer than anticipated. "When in doubt, do nothing"

[@D__Lee]

Imagine if the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster had happened in South Korea and the response to the nuclear disaster had been similar to the Sewol Ferry disaster.

[@MrTmm97]

To hear the captain left knowing there were hundred of stranded children and the coast guard crew first responders refused orders and did not “respond” is beyond shameful. I couldn’t live with myself in either roll having done what they did. I’ve watched many of these accident videos and I’m always amazed at the danger the first responders face and what they are willing to risk to attempt and rescue sometimes as little as a single life. Yet here a video shows the exact opposite of what every other video like this has shown… instead of bravery of first responders, you see coward-ess. Instead of heroism, you see disgracefulness. Those teachers attempting rescue, risking their lives to save what children they could were the only heroes of this story. I feel so awful for those families and I hope that this situation at least led to change in the focus on safety on the maritime industry in Korea.

[@ontaes]

I'm watching this on the anniversary. I've never seen the incident be so thoroughly explained as you have. thank you. this case makes me so sad and infuriated. children died that day bc of careless adults.

[@atqmra13]

Holy Christ. This is absolutely infuriating! What a bunch of cowards. Apparently they don’t believe that the captain goes down with the ship

[@MarcLucksch]

He doesn’t have to go down with the ship, but he damn well should make sure everyone else is off the boat first.

[@thesisypheanjournal1271]

When I was in Korea at the time I'd heard several things that haven't been confirmed since then. Maybe you know: Rumor 1: The US Navy had offered to help with the rescue but the Koreans had said that they had it under control. Rumor 2: It took 20 minutes just to launch the first Coast Guard boat because they weren't ready for cast-off. Rumor 3: They couldn't reach the President for hours to get authorization for action because she was involved with a dalliance with her lover and nobody wanted to bother her.

[@rachelstratman1405]

They needed the PRESIDENT to order action?? They have to go to the top of the pyramid for a ferry rescue? I'd hate to think what would happen if there had been an incoming missile....would they have interrupted the president for that??! Stupidest thing I ever heard of......I'm glad she got tossed in jail: with great power comes great responsibility! Next time someone wants to complain about the US government, they should think of this little gem.

[@thesisypheanjournal1271]

@@rachelstratman1405 My understanding is that they needed her approval for anything more than just sending out the local coast guard boats.

[@rachelstratman1405]

@@thesisypheanjournal1271 OK I guess that makes a bit more sense......thank you for clarifying.

[@kgjung2310]

In Japan, a Japan Air Lines 747 (JAL 123) crashed into the mountains when its vertical stabilizer was almost completely ripped off due to a faulty repair. Miraculously, there were several survivors. Luckily, an American military helicopter with paramedics onboard quickly reached the crash site and requested permission to land the medics off to help the survivors. They were told not to drop because the Japanese government refused to give permission. The government told the Americans that they would handle it and leave the site alone. The Americans had to leave while the survivors, who thought help was there to rescue them, watch them leave. Japanese authorities wouldn't get to the site for many hours and many people who might have been saved had they gotten immediate medical attention ending up dying. American airplane manufactures have had several incidents in which people lost their lives because of corporate greed and shortcuts. The DC-10, the 747, and most recently the 737 Max all had incidents in which known problems were not addressed because doing so would have delayed or prevented sales. The FAA is full of incidents in which they failed to enforce safety measures which ended up doing the same thing.

[@PointNemo9]

@@rachelstratman1405 Her being put in prison had nothing to do with Sewol whatsoever, she was impeached for corruption and abuse of power.

[@westhavenor9513]

A truly shocking level of incompetence before, during, and after this disaster. Those poor kids all drowning for following instructions. There was plenty of time to save them, had someone acted.

[@ellenbryn]

Even for stories of this type, I feel like this one's unprecedented. Whisky. Tango. Alpha. Foxtrot. And this was AFTER Costa Concordia, and in some ways I feel like the crew AND THE COAST GUARD in this event were even worse than the captain of Costa Concordia; he was a coward (and/or drunk or having a breakdown) and a useless piece of seaweed, but at least he didn't impede the rescue! I have learned about so many accidents like this, from the Sultana to the Triangle Fire, and I don't think I've ever seen one with more different people who directly contributed to the body count with their callousness (could they not bestir themselves even a TINY BIT to check on the passengers?) and failure to communicate, for such an extended period of time. And the crew KNEW most of their passengers were teenagers! That "stay in your cabin" recording is utter nightmare fuel. These kids were on their very first field trip in a society that teaches discipline, so of COURSE they were trying to be good and follow instructions, waiting their turn and trusting those organizing the evacuation (!) had a plan. I fear in part II we're going to discover that many passengers survived inside the inverted ship and had time to write or record final messages while authorities continued to dither. I think I missed a political upheaval in S. Korea I should've been paying more attention to. My impression was they weren't this bad now (then again, I live in a city of 300,000 people in the US that's nearly half Korean, and while some must've fled North Korean before it was partitioned, I think a lot more are South Korean in origin.I took it for granted N. Korea was the dictatorship- so why have so many sensible, educated, and likeable folks from South Korea moved here and become Americans in the past 40 years?!) This accident sounds like it's going to shed light on more than the foibles of a corrupt shipping industry and coast guard.

[@kateemma22]

The worst part of this story was how it was politicised. These days the Sewol is called a political stunt by right-wingers and National Socialists (Nazis) in SK and the family are still harassed for talking about their lost kids. They think it was made up to demonise the President.

[@mwest3191]

It’s truly hard to believe; accidents (negligence) like this are tragic enough in themselves, but the obvious number of how many could and should have been saved in that time frame, and not only WEREN’T, but were actively GIVEN INSTRUCTIONS that would impede their ability to save themselves! 😱 The Government was primarily concerned with covering it up, WHILE IT WAS HAPPENING! 🤯

[@andrewgause6971]

Humans can be lazy, stupid, and cowardly. Its why engineers try to implement redundancies and such and rules and regs often call for such seemingly asinine restrictions. Those are safety margins and attempts to mitigate the actions of idiots. Sadly, it is impossible to make something foolproof or idiot proof. Because fools and idiots are surprising adept.

[@redengineer4380]

This accident is basically the Costa Concordia, but with Captain Schettino as literally everyone involved in the rescue operation. Though the DPRK has a lot of problems, at least one thing it has going for it is that, if this were a DPRK ship, the people in charge of this operation would have likely all been killed for causing such a national embarrassment.

[@Tamaki742]

Yeah, at least the Concordia sinking has De Falco in charge AND making good decisions. It wasn't an easy decision either to send a full rescue fleet. Since Schettino lied, if it turned out that the cruise wasn't sinking, it'd reflect badly on him. Korea literally had nearby Navy ships asking if they need help and just turned them all away.

[@jolo3118]

So the captain was the first off the vessel?? Wow.

[@jenniferk9242]

I don't know if I can watch this one. You've got really great content, very in-depth and good approach to subject matter. But I've watched a video about this and to watch another is just too heartbreaking. Still giving it a "Like" because I know you'll have done this tragedy justice. Maybe I'll give it another go down the road, but today I can't bear the heartbreak.

[@macstmanj3]

Wait, the coast guard was ORDERED to go into the ship to rescue them? And they refused? Man, I hope the rest of the Korean military isn't like that. "Defend us from the invading North Koreans!" "Hmmm I dunno, sounds kinda dangerous. I think I'll sit this one out"

[@starrsmith3810]

The crew was despicable cowards. Makes me have even more respect for a certain ocean liner’s crew.

[@idontknowwhatimdoinghere]

The certain ocean liner being the RMS Clickbait?

[@FloofyPurple]

I remember when this happened. I kept checking the news, hoping they had more survivors. I didn't know anyone involved, but I cried for them. Such a loss of life, and for what? Nothing.

[@planescaped]

If there's one thing I've learned about watching ship tragedy's, never stay put, and never trust that the captain/ship know what they're doing. As quite often they tend to buckle under the stress. If shit like this happens, you take the initiative immediately to save yourself.

[@arganiaspinosa9122]

Reminds me of the Greenfell apartment building fire where residents were told to stay put in their apartments. Had they ignored those directives and left the burning building anyway, perhaps more of them would be alive. Truly sad.

[@nomad8723]

I really appreciate how you meld professional, technical coverage with emotional response. Too often films (in the MSM and on YT) sway too heavily in one direction. While being totally objective is useful for an govt. report, it lacks the human connection. In the same way, sensationalists just turn disasters into distasteful or downright predatory clickbait. Your content is the perfect blend to get the layman to understand these occurances fully, without neglecting that most disasters are precipitated by people making poor decisions.

[@Syclone0044]

You really summed up what I love about his video but could not put a finger on precisely why!

[@kriscook2423]

I watch documentaries to learn and try and understand what makes disasters happen. Out of every disaster I know about, this one makes me feel so sick. The more people were downright negligent in their duties and uncaring of the life they were responsible the more I was shaking my head. I could not believe it. I started crying when the ferry completely capsized and started to sink in the video because all I could imagine was what was going on inside. These people trusted and obeyed the authority figures and now they were in a dark, watery, chaotic place where they were going to die and no one who could have saved them did. This was murder, absolute murder.

[@sixstringedthing]

Said all I wanted to say on the community post, so I'll just say another "Well done" here. As everyone has said, take your time on Part 2. Just noticed all the cargo containers piled up on the port side in the thumbnail... just sums up the Chonghaejin operation perfectly.

[@coffeesweet1]

I recently watched the movie 'Birthday' about the family of one of the Sewol ferry victim and now they still dealing with the loss and trauma after so many years. it's pretty much represent the feeling of the parents and families of the sewol ferry victims. I think I spent half pack of tissue as I cried so much throughout the movie. those people who are responsible for this incident, they are not human. how can the crew and captain fled to save himself and left those innocent school kids behind and those in the government and whoever involved in the cover up, they are just the same. I just cant comprehend the selfishness and level of irresponsibility they have. no matter the numbers of years they spent in prison, will never be enough to pay for what they did.

[@zidanazmi]

Probably one of the best, professional and concise documentary video channels out there! Thank you so much for all the hard work you put into shedding light on these events that we otherwise would not have known.

[@Zigfried207]

"The captain was among the first groups to be evacuated from a ship." He's a weak-willed slug, not a captain.

[@pfadiva]

I sincerely hope SK's Coast Guard has improved since this happened. All the stupidity and incompetence are horrible enough but for the patrol boat to refuse orders to search for survivors?! Twice!

[@kananaba]

I first heard of this disaster a few months ago from a documentary. I was left bewildered, beyond frustrated, ANGRY on behalf of these people I never knew. The utter callousness and incompetence from everyone in charge just broke my brain. They had plenty of time, these kids could have been saved! Now, hearing about how the crew was never trained on evacuation procedures, how the ship was overloaded, how the company was allowed to continue skirting regulations for years... I'm infuriated again. And I'm just a stranger. How must the families directly affected feel...

[@MRptwrench]

Thank You, To everyone who contributed to the production of this video. A grim undertaking, to be sure, but your work will make many people think. It may go further by creating discussion and perhaps action. This event can not be undone, but it surely must not happen again. Thank you, again.

[@vayneshade]

I’ve been so captured by this tragedy. Thank you for giving such a comprehensive, honest and sensitive expose on such a heartbreaking incident. I cannot wait for upcoming parts.

[@usmale4915]

Horrific, just absolutely horrific. I like your videos because you go into such depth! Thank you for sharing!

[@Truckngirl]

Your respectful and thorough coverage of this tragedy was extremely well done. You produce great work. I hope your channel grows and grows. Hope you stay warm. Omaha gets cold this time of year!

[@fatbottombiker3038]

This was one of the saddest tragedies I have ever watched on YT. I literally cried like a baby watching this story on a different channel. Thank you for covering this.

[@liamcollinson5695]

I cannot believe that passengers were told to stay in they cabins. And the the fact that a young passenger had the wisdom to call the coast guard before the crew is just shocking

[@johndonaldson3619]

This is where 'blind obedience' takes your life. If I was on a listing boat I'd have immediately went above deck regardless on any tape messages!

[@laurenanderson7330]

They were kids

[@userequaltoNull]

@@laurenanderson7330 high schoolers. More relevantly, they were Koreans. Asian culture has a big problem with authority.

[@BSenta]

Yeah and conversely blind contrarianism is equivalent to blind obedience, just inverted. Ie when people believe conspiracy theories about vaccines... Despite millions taking them safety. But i agree Asian culture have far too much simping and worshipping boomers

[@sashizakura9124]

I was thinking the same thing - that my instinct for survival would get me flying out of those cabins and up to the upper decks, but you have to remember that they also had TEACHERS with them, trying to make them stay put. It would have been hard to resist that as a young student. I'm so grateful for the teacher who did eventually decide to make a break for it with some of his/her students - and made it out alive. I can't even imagine what horror those survivors live with today, realizing the other lives they left behind (even though it was not their fault, of course!). The power of group think is strong, even among adults sometimes. Humans seem to like to conform to our immediate social group at that moment, and when we're young, we tend to trust adults to know what's best for us. Just such an awful tragedy, to this day I can barely stand to remember it.

[@thelittleredhairedgirlfrom6527]

Easy to play badass and act like you would’ve done better when you’re not in that situation