Searchers have found the stern section of a South Korean warship that was torn apart by a mystery blast near the North Korean border and divers will try to reach it later Monday, the military said.
A successful dive would provide clues about the fate of 46 missing crewmen and about the cause of the blast which sent the 1,200-tonne corvette to the bottom of the Yellow Sea Friday night.
Military divers will try at 2:00 pm (0500 GMT) to reach the stern portion of the 88-metre (290-foot) Cheonan, where most of the missing are believed located following one of the country’s worst maritime disasters.
The ship sank near the tense disputed border with the North, scene of deadly naval clashes in 1999 and 2002 and of a firefight last November.
Seoul officials say there is no evidence so far Pyongyang was involved in Friday’s blast.
The front portion was located over the weekend. But divers had to postpone attempts to reach it due to strong currents, poor visibility and high waves, stirring anger among families of the missing who demanded swifter salvage efforts.
The stern section was located by sonar late Sunday, the military said. The two sections are some 230 metres apart and divers Monday will try to reach both.
“The rapid currents and poor visibility under the sea are the biggest stumbling block,” Lee Ki-Shik, spokesman for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a briefing.
“We plan to do the rescue work in the belief that there could be still survivors both in the stern and the bow,” Lee said, adding underwater cameras would soon be lowered.
A second attempt to dive on the wreck would be made at 8:00 pm Monday, with dive times determined by tides and currents. The stern is 40 metres underwater.
President Lee Myung-Bak has called four emergency security meetings since the sinking but cautioned against jumping to conclusions about the cause.
“Do not give up hope that there could be survivors,” he told searchers Monday in a statement. “Look into the causes of the incident thoroughly and leave no single piece of doubt behind.”
A total of 58 crewmen were saved soon after the Cheonan went down south of Baengnyeong island, but no one has been rescued since then despite a major air and sea search.
Fourteen navy craft and six coastguard ships backed up by aircraft were involved Monday, plus a 3,200-tonne US salvage ship with 15 divers.
Theories about the cause range from an explosion inside the corvette, which was reportedly carrying torpedoes, depth charges, missiles and other weaponry; a drifting mine; or a torpedo attack from the North.
US and South Korean military officials say no unusual movements have been detected by the North, which has said nothing about the incident.
Newspapers called for calm until the cause is established.
“Anything could have caused the explosion, but we should not jump to conclusions without any hard evidence,” the best-selling Chosun Ilbo said.
Dong-A Ilbo called for patience until final facts were revealed but added: “If North Korea is behind this, we will need a firm and strong payback.”
