Asia-Pacific
S Koreans mourn deaths of sailors in naval disaster
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-04-26 15:43
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SEOUL - Undeterred by heavy rain and wind, thousands of South Koreans flocked to the city hall plaza in the capital of Seoul Monday, the second day of the five-day national mourning period for dead and missing navy sailors in a recent naval tragedy.
 South Korean Prime Minister Chung Un-chan (R, front row) and Defence Minister Kim Tae-young (L, front row) offer flowers to portraits of deceased sailors from the sunken South Korean naval vessel Cheonan during a memorial service at the Second Fleet Command of Navy in Pyeongtaek, south of Seoul, April 25, 2010. [Agencies] |
A total of 6,760 South Koreans have visited a mourning alter established in front of the city hall since Sunday to bid farewell to the 46 sailors, killed and feared dead in one of the country's worst naval disasters late last month.
"The Republic of Korea will not forget your lofty sacrifice," Lee wrote in a guest book using South Korea's official name, according to local media.
A 1,200-ton corvette Cheonan with 104 crew members aboard sank late last month into tense waters off the west coast of the Korean peninsula, after an unexplained blast split the ship in half.
Investigators looking into the mysterious incident have said that a powerful external blast at a close range, rather than a direct hit, might have sunk the warship.
"Perhaps the sky is also crying. This heavy rain seems to be a blessing from the sky (for the dead sailors.) I only hope they will rest forever in peace in heaven," Lee Young-hye, a Seoulite, told Xinhua.
