A South Korean ferry ran aground after the helmsman became distracted by his mobile phone, a member of the coastguard said on Thursday.
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All 267 passengers and crew were safely brought to a nearby port after the ferry crashed on an uninhabited island off South Korea’s southwestern coast.
The passenger vessel was travelling from Jeju Island to the port city of Mokpo when it ran aground after 8pm (local time) on Wednesday, authorities said.
A preliminary investigation found that “the officer responsible for steering had been looking at his mobile phone and allowed autopilot to take control in an area where the ship should have been manually operated”, a Korea coastguard official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“As a result, the vessel missed the proper moment to change course, veered towards the uninhabited island and ran aground.”
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The coastguard plans to press criminal charges against the individual as it was “clear negligence”, the official added.
No serious injuries were reported, and 246 passengers were safely moved to a nearby port on rescue ships, the Ministry of Safety said in a statement.