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One dead, 4 others missing in fishing boat fire off Dokdo

December 29, 2014
(Yonhap)

The fire on the Munseong 103 occurred around 5:13 a.m. some 5 nautical miles northeast of the Dokdo islets. (Yonhap)

SEOUL (Yonhap) — One fisherman died and four others went missing Tuesday after a fishing vessel carrying 10 sailors caught fire off South Korea’s easternmost islets of Dokdo, the safety ministry said.

The fire on the Munseong 103 occurred around 5:13 a.m. some 5 nautical miles northeast of the Dokdo islets, the Ministry of Public Safety and Security said.

As of 8:30 a.m., six sailors were rescued, though one of them later died and another remained unconscious, said Munseong Fisheries Co., the owner of the ship, citing the Korean Coast Guard. The remaining four — two Koreans and as many Vietnamese — were listed as missing.

Seven South Koreans and three foreign nationals were aboard the 29-ton ship.

A Korean Coast Guard vessel was rushed to the site to put out the fire, while naval vessels were also dispatched for the rescue operation, the ministry said.