World · East Asia & Pacific · 1 hr ago
South Korean ferry accidents rise despite 100% safety action completion rate
South Korea’s Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority, or KOMSA, inspects passenger ferries and requires safety fixes when it finds problems.
Accidents rose from 35 in 2021 to 86 last year, even as KOMSA said it completed all required safety actions for five straight years.
On the New Jangbogo ferry, a heater-panel defect was marked fixed, but a fire broke out about 70 days later from overheating and an internal short circuit in a passenger cabin.
The Queen Jenuvia 2 ran aground near Jukdo in Sinan County nine days after a special winter inspection; KOMSA said this accident was caused by the operator’s failure to keep watch and was unrelated to earlier inspection findings.
KOMSA will increase onboard route checks from once to four times a year, including checks of watchkeeping and safety management.
The incidents have raised concerns that recording completed fixes may not show whether hazards have actually been removed.
A lawmaker is calling for stronger checks to confirm that safety risks are dealt with in practice.
South Korean passenger ferry accidents rose from 35 in 2021 to 86 last year, even as the reported safety-action completion rate remained at 100% for five years.
A National Assembly member called for changes to the safety management system, saying completed inspections and actions do not show whether risks were actually removed.
The Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority said a fire on the New Jangbogo was caused by a similar issue to one previously flagged and marked resolved.
The authority said the Queen Jenubia 2 grounding was caused by the operator’s failure to keep watch and was unrelated to earlier inspection findings.
After the grounding, the authority said it would increase on-board route inspections from once to four times a year.
- Who
- The Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority (KOMSA), passenger ferry operators and National Assembly member Cho Seung-hwan.
- What
- Ferry accidents increased despite a reported 100% completion rate for required safety actions.
- When
- Accidents rose from 35 in 2021 to 86 last year; the article was published on October 18, 2026.
- Where
- South Korea; the Queen Jenubia 2 ran aground near Jokdo, Sinan County, South Jeolla Province.
- Why
- KOMSA attributed the Queen Jenubia 2 grounding to the operator’s failure to keep watch. The article does not explain the overall rise in accidents.
Cho Seung-hwan
Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority
Safety action results
Cho Seung-hwan
The 100% completion rate has not prevented accidents, and the system should verify that risks are actually removed.
Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority
The authority reported that all required safety actions were completed; it said the Queen Jenubia 2 grounding was unrelated to inspection findings and resulted from a failure to keep watch.
KOMSA recorded safety action on a faulty heating panel aboard the New Jangbogo as complete.
A fire caused by an overheated heating panel and internal short circuit broke out in the New Jangbogo’s second-floor port-side passenger cabin.
The Queen Jenubia 2 received a winter special inspection.
The Queen Jenubia 2 ran aground near Jokdo, Sinan County, injuring 27 people.
KOMSA said it would increase route inspections involving an authority official boarding the vessel from once to four times a year.
- Passenger ferry accidents
- 35 in 2021; 86 last year
- Safety action completion rate
- 100% for five consecutive years through last year
- Safety action requests
- 2,117 completed by July this year
- New Jangbogo fire
- April 10 this year
- Queen Jenubia 2 grounding
- Near Jokdo, Sinan County; 27 people injured
- Route inspections
- Increased from once to four times a year
What people are saying
안전조치 완료율이 5년 연속 100%를 기록했지만 여객선 사고는 오히려 늘고 있다
점검과 조치를 완료했다는 실적에 그칠 것이 아니라 실제 위험요인이 제거됐는지 확인할 수 있도록 안전관리체계를 개선해야 한다