All 246 passengers on South Korean ferry stranded were rescued

A South Korean passenger ship ran aground off the country’s southeastern coast and all 246 passengers on board have been rescued, the Coast Guard said.

The Queen Jenuvia 2 is stuck on a reef and cannot be moved, but there is currently no risk of sinking or capsizing, officials added.

The accident occurred near Changshan Island in Xin’an County on Wednesday night local time. The ship ran aground near the uninhabited Jiaodao Island.

Local media reported that five people suffered minor injuries as a result of the grounding, but there were no other casualties.

Some crew members are reportedly still on board and cooperating with the Coast Guard. It was unclear how many of the 21 ferry workers remained on the ferry.

South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok has ordered the mobilization of all available ships to rescue the ferry.

“We have confirmed that there is no flooding at the moment. We are transferring passengers to patrol boats and moving them to a safe location,” the Coast Guard official said, according to Chosun Ilbo.

The Coast Guard plans to move the vessel ashore at high tide.

The 26,000-ton ferry departed from the resort island of Jeju and was heading to the port city of Mokpo, officials said.

The area is near the site where the Sewol ferry sank in 2014 Killed more than 300 peoplemostly primary school students on school trips.

About three years later, the salvaged wreckage of the Sewol was brought to Mokpo.