According to the South Korean government, 293 people are missing following the sinking of a passenger ship. The ship was reportedly carrying hundreds of high school students to the resort island of Jeju. The students were bound for the holiday island when disaster struck, leaving a male student and a female crew member confirmed dead, and the rest missing.

Lee Gyeong-Og, the vice minister of security and public administration, spoke of the tragedy earlier today. “The remaining 293 are unaccounted for,” he said during a press briefing in Seoul. A total of 174 individuals have been rescued, including 75 students.

Im Hyeong Min, a student from the school, told broadcaster YTN about his lucky rescue: “Luckily, I was able to jump, like many others.”

Television footage showed many of the students wearing life jackets and climbing onto inflatable boats, as many others fell into the water. While the cause of the accident is unknown, after being rescued, many of the students reported feeling the ferry come to a sudden, shuddering halt, suggesting that the ship may have run aground.

Stay with us as we uncover more about this story.

Keep Up With PopWrapped On The Web!