3 sailors dead in coast guard boat capsize

Three sailors died on Thursday after a Coast Guard boat carrying them in seas off the southern island of Jeju capsized during a rescue operation for a Malaysian cargo ship, the Coast Guard said. According to Yonhap, the Coast Guard boat, which capsized in waters about 27.7 kilometers off the west coast of Jeju Island at 12:16 p.m., was transferring 15 sailors from the troubled Malaysian freighter to a rescue ship when high waves turned it over. The three sailors from the Malaysian ship were taken to a nearby hospital but pronounced dead on arrival while two other crew members remain unconscious after being injured in the capsize. The boat was on a rescue mission, with other accompanying vessels, for the Malaysian freighter heading to Singapore which had sought the Coast Guard's help due to taking water on board. Four South Korean Coast Guard officers were also aboard the boat. The identities of the dead sailors are not yet known.