Seoul Metro CEO Chang Jung-woo resigned Friday over the subway collision on Line 2 that injured more than 246 people last week. A train rear-ended another at Sangwangsimni Station on Seoul’s busiest subway line on May 2. The operator said the accident was caused by an apparent mechanical malfunction of its signal system. A second accident Thursday on Line 1 is likely to have increased the pressure for Chung to resign. “(Those involved) will be held responsible,” Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon said in

Seoul Metro CEO Chang Jung-woo resigned Friday over the subway collision that injured more than 246 people last week. A train rear-ended another at Sangwangsimni Station on Seoul’s busiest subway line, Line 2, on May 2. The operator said the accident was caused by an apparent mechanical malfunction of its signal system.  (Lee Sang-sub/The Korea Herald)Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon said in a briefing that the CEO offered to resign early in the morning. “(Those involved) will be held responsible,” Par

Investigators on Thursday detained the CEO of the Sewol’s operator as they sought to uncover the cause of the ferry accident. Chonghaejin Marine Co. CEO Kim Han-shik was detained at his house in Bundang, Gyeonggi Province, after the court issued a warrant late Wednesday, officials said.Charges against Kim include manslaughter, negligence and violation of the Ship Safety Act. The prosecution also detained an auditor surnamed Park working for I-One-I Holdings ― a subsidiary of Semo Group ― and sum

Prosecutors have indicted former STX Group chairman Kang Duk-soo over alleged business malpractice and embezzlement, officials said Thursday. Kang was accused of illegally funneling funds from STX Heavy Industries Co., a financially troubled shipbuilder, to support other affiliates in trouble. He was also suspected to have misappropriated company money to bribe political circles. The Seoul Central Prosecutors’ Office said in its interim report that Kang allegedly made undue profits with fabricat

A closed gate of Yoo Byung-eon’s house in Yeomgok-dong, southern Seoul (Yonhap)A transfer of assets between former Semo Group chairman Yoo Byung-eon and his eldest son has come under scrutiny with records suggesting illegal methods may have been used in the process.Records show that Yoo’s real estate assets were purchased by his eldest son Dae-gyun during Semo Group’s liquidation, at the time of which the younger Yoo was aged 28-33. The methods were allegedly used to avoid a loss of assets follo

President Park Geun-hye on Tuesday publicly apologized for failing to prevent the tragic ferry disaster that left at least 264 people, mostly high school students, dead and 38 still missing.“As a president, who has a duty to protect the nation, I’m truly heavy-hearted and feel sorry to the bereaved families,” Park said at Jogyesa Temple in Seoul during a Buddhist ceremony that paid tribute to victims of the accident.The president’s speech followed an earlier apology she made during a Cabinet mee

Police on Tuesday raided more Seoul Metro offices over a subway collision that injured more than 240 people last week.Investigators seized documents and data on traffic signals from the mechanics department at its headquarters in Gangnam and annexes in Euljiro and Dongdaemun stations, police said. They also confiscated documents from a private firm in charge of entering signal data in the system, alleging that the accident was caused by a signal failure. “The operator changed signal data on Apri

South Koreans’ frustration with narcissistic attention seekers has hit a fresh high after a flurry of frauds and lies that added confusion to the recent ferry disaster.A woman who identified herself as a diver and made false claims about the ferry rescue operation on TV was arrested last month on charges of defamation and fraud. But long before her arrest, she was recognized by many online who claimed that she had been involved in numerous fraud cases ― posing as an entertainment news reporter,

Insurance firms are not required to pay for vessels that sink due to changes in the structure of the ship, a Seoul court said on Thursday.The Seoul Central District Court on April 3 ruled in favor of Dongbu Insurance Co., concluding that the firm does not have to pay for the vessel Seokjung 36 that sank off the coast of Ulsan in 2012. The then 29-year-old Japanese ship was purchased by Seokjung Engineering and Construction in 2007. Its structure was later modified, adding more than 500 tons to i

South Korea, China and Japan have agreed to step up efforts to reduce ultrafine pollutants as part of their cooperation on environmental issues.The announcement came after a two-day meeting of the three countries’ environment ministers in Daegu, Korea, where they discussed a range of environmental threats. It was the first ministerial meeting held by the three countries to come up with solutions to protect public health.“The ministers shared the concerns of the risks posed by air pollution on hu

The South Korean Coast Guard has warned of legal actions over allegations that the Sewol’s communication log with the Vessel Traffic Service was fabricated. Local broadcaster SBS on Sunday raised suspicions that parts of the communication log revealed on April 20 were deleted and the conversation was rearranged. “We will seek all possible legal actions against the broadcaster, including filing a complaint with the state-run Press Arbitration Commission,” the Coast Guard said in a statement, imme

Classes for Danwon High School freshmen and sophomores who did not sign up for the ill-fated field trip to Jejudo Island resumed Monday, as funerals for the ferry victims were held in the same town. The chilly, rainy weather reflected the general somber mood, as the students walked past flowers and messages outside the gates. Some students were seen standing still as funeral cars carrying the victims of the Sewol disaster passed by. Reporters’ access to school staff members, students and parents

An appeals court on Friday upheld a lower court’s ruling to acquit a former Seoul City official of espionage charges. Yoo Woo-seong, a 34-year-old of North Korean-Chinese descent, was accused of spying for Pyongyang while working at the Seoul municipal government from June 2011 to January 2013. The Seoul High Court, however, found Yoo guilty of hiding his Chinese citizenship when entering the country in 2004 and violating the Act on the Protection and Settlement Support of Residents Escaping fro

Efforts to provide aid and monetary support for the ferry victims are accelerating in Korea, with corporations, politicians and celebrities offering their support. Below are a few organizations providing information and handling donations for victims and their families. Our thoughts are with everyone who has been affected. ● The Community Chest of KoreaWebsite: www.chest.or.krContact: (02) 6262-3000● The Korea Disaster Relief AssociationWebsite: www.relief.or.krContact: (02) 6251-9595● The Korea

South Korean divers searching for missing passengers in the sunken ferry Sewol are suffering from health problems, according to a rescue center. Ten divers from a joint rescue team of civilian and state organizations were treated in decompression chambers on two Navy ships Wednesday, after showing symptoms of paralysis and severe headaches. One has been confirmed as having decompression sickness, the emergency center said Thursday. “Divers are suffering from more fatigue as the rescue operation

It has been a long, silent week in South Korea since the fateful morning of April 16.Much of what happened inside the sunken ferry remains unknown, leaving the victims’ relatives, and South Koreans in general, struggling with despair and sadness.The word “regret” weighs heavily on the entire nation. Many Koreans feel horrified by the helplessness of those on board at the time of the sinking, the utter lack of rescue plans and the actions of the crew members. Worse, the government appears to have

Investigators intensified their probe on Tuesday into what caused the ferry Sewol to list and capsize and arrested more crew members allegedly responsible for the tragic accident. Four crew members were issued arrest warrants on Tuesday evening on charges of neglect of duty and leaving hundreds of passengers trapped inside the sinking ship. The number of arrests has now reached a total of seven, including the ship’s 69-year-old captain, Lee Joon-seok, and two others who were arrested on Saturday

South Korean authorities widened their investigation into the cause of the ferry disaster on Monday by arresting four crew members and banning others involved from leaving the country. Prosecutors on Monday barred the family that owns Chonghaejin Marine Co., the operator of the ill-fated ferry Sewol, from leaving Korea.The Incheon District Prosecutors’ Office took the measure as part of an expanding probe to identify whether the ship’s renovation and the crew members’ lack of safety education pl

Hong Ga-hye doing interview on KBS a few years ago then again on MBN in 2014A Korean woman who made a false claim in a television interview about the delayed rescue operation of the capsized ferry Sewol turned herself in late Sunday, police said.The South Jeolla Provincial Police Agency on Saturday issued a warrant to detain the 26-year-old woman, surnamed Hong, who claimed that the Coast Guard told civilian divers to “kill time” and that some divers had confirmed survivors inside the sunken shi

Divers combed the sunken ferry Sewol, retrieving more than a dozen bodies over the weekend.More than 560 divers took turns Sunday entering the ship and searching passenger compartments while 204 Navy, Coast Guard and private vessels. But hopes were fading for any survivors among the hundreds still missing.