Special memorial service marking 4th anniversary of Sewol-ho ferry disaster held today
- 6 years ago
It was four years ago today, on April 16th, 2014,... when the Sewol-ho ferry that was heading to Jeju Island from Incheon,... capsized in the waters off South Korea's southwest coast near Jindo Island,... leaving 304 dead-- 5 of them still missing.
To mark the fourth anniversary of the disaster,... various memorial events were held nationwide over the weekend.
And today, in just under an hour,... the first government-sponsored memorial will begin in Ansan.
Our Park Hee-jun is live at the site for us.
Hee-jun, can you tell us more about the memorial?
Ji-yoon, I'm at the Hwarang Amusement Park in Ansan , Gyeonggi-do Province,... where the memorial service will be held in about an hour at 3 PM.
The city is home to Danwon High School,... which lost more than 260 of its students and teachers to the Sewol-ho disaster.
Around 5-thousand people, including Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon, political party leaders, and of course, the families of the victims will be attending the service to pay tribute to the victims.
Authorities and the people of Ansan have been preparing for the event all day, and many people are here already.
It's definitely a sad and mournful atmosphere here.
Take a listen to some of the people who have come to pay their respects.
"As a parent myself, I feel terrible every time I come here. I came today, because it's the only time I can be with the victims."
"My eldest child is the same age as the victims. That day,... I saw my son come back from school, and could not imagine what the victims' parents must have been going through. I think this is the only way we can be with the victims,... so I came."
The two-hour service will include commemorative performances, religious services, and then a floral tribute.
And after today,... the memorial facility will be pulled down and turned into a separate area for the victims and their families.
I'll have more updates for our next newscast. Jiyoon.
To mark the fourth anniversary of the disaster,... various memorial events were held nationwide over the weekend.
And today, in just under an hour,... the first government-sponsored memorial will begin in Ansan.
Our Park Hee-jun is live at the site for us.
Hee-jun, can you tell us more about the memorial?
Ji-yoon, I'm at the Hwarang Amusement Park in Ansan , Gyeonggi-do Province,... where the memorial service will be held in about an hour at 3 PM.
The city is home to Danwon High School,... which lost more than 260 of its students and teachers to the Sewol-ho disaster.
Around 5-thousand people, including Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon, political party leaders, and of course, the families of the victims will be attending the service to pay tribute to the victims.
Authorities and the people of Ansan have been preparing for the event all day, and many people are here already.
It's definitely a sad and mournful atmosphere here.
Take a listen to some of the people who have come to pay their respects.
"As a parent myself, I feel terrible every time I come here. I came today, because it's the only time I can be with the victims."
"My eldest child is the same age as the victims. That day,... I saw my son come back from school, and could not imagine what the victims' parents must have been going through. I think this is the only way we can be with the victims,... so I came."
The two-hour service will include commemorative performances, religious services, and then a floral tribute.
And after today,... the memorial facility will be pulled down and turned into a separate area for the victims and their families.
I'll have more updates for our next newscast. Jiyoon.