Five missing after boat sinks off S Korea

Five fishermen were reported missing on Sunday after their boat sank off South Korea's southeastern port of Busan, officials said.

Five fishermen were reported missing on Sunday after their boat sank off South Korea's southeastern port of Busan, officials said.

HT Image

The five -- three South Koreans and two Indonesians -- were among 25 crew aboard a 129-tonne boat, Geumyang, which sank early on Sunday while operating in waters around 65 kilometres (40 miles) east of Busan, the coast guard said.

The other 20 crew were rescued by other fishing boats nearby.

Three coast guard ships, backed by a helicopter, from South Korea and another three patrol boats from Japan were searching the area for the missing crew, a coast guard official in Busan told AFP.

High waves and strong winds hampered the search, the official said, adding that investigations were under way to determine the cause of the accident.