Excessive cargo capsized Sewol ferry

Excessive cargo and inappropriate cargo bondage within the ferry seem to be the reasons that cause the Sewol ferry to capsize.

South Korean investigators made the first declarations regarding what they think was the reason the ferry sunk, killing over 260 people out of the 467 passengers and crew.

Because the cargo was double the limit permitted for the ship and because it was not tied down properly, it allowed the loading to move around the ship and, eventually, made it capsize.

‘The lashing devices that should have held cargo goods steady were loose, and some of the crew members did not even know how to use them correctly,’ senior prosecutor Yang Joong-jin said.

Investigators also found out that, beginning with 2013, the Sewol ferry had carried excess cargo 139 times and earned the Cheonghaejin Marine company an extra 62 million South Korean won ($62,000).

On Tuesday, the ferry disaster stroke again and claimed the life of a diver.