South Korea Ferry Disaster: Messages from a Sinking Ship

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - As a South Korean ferry came to a shuddering halt and rapidly began to sink, some of those on board sent harrowing text messages to their loved ones.

With almost 300 people still unaccounted for one day after the accident, reports of desperate text messages from some of those trapped on board have surfaced in local media.

"This might be the last chance to say I love you," one student named as Shin Young-Jin is reported to have texted his mother.

"Why's that," his mother texted back, clearly unaware of the crisis engulfing the vessel. "I love you anyway."

According to the Korea Herald, he was among the 179 people rescued from the ship so far.

But other parents who received such messages have not been reunited with their children.

Another exchange between one student and her father was recounted by the AFP news agency and local media:

Student: "Dad, don't worry. I'm wearing a life vest and am with other girls. We're inside the ship, still in the hallway."

Father: "I know that the rescue is under way, but shouldn't you be waiting outside the rail? Try to get out if you can."

Student: "The ship is too tilted. The hallway is crowded with so many people."

The student who sent these messages remains unaccounted for.

In another text exchange widely published on South Korean media a student texted his older brother as the ship ran into trouble.

Student: "The ship ran into something and it's not moving. They say the coast guard just arrived."

Brother: "Don't panic. Just do what you are told to do and then you will be fine".

But there was no further communication after that.

Some parents were able to stay in touch with their children on the phone until lines were cut off. Park Yu-Shin, whose daughter is among the missing, told the AFP news agency that she talked to her daughter as she was coping with the emergency.

"She was telling me: 'We're putting on our life vests. They're telling us to wait and stay put, so we're waiting [...] I can see a helicopter", Ms Park said. Her daughter is still among the missing.

Reports that messages have been received from students still trapped inside the ferry have not been verified.

DIMAS SIREGAR | BBC | AFP