The sunken Sewol ferry is loaded onto a semi-submersible transport vessel during the salvage operation in waters off Jindo, South Korea, Saturday. (Lee Jin-wook/Yonhap via AP)SEOUL - Salvage crews towed a corroded 6,800-tonne South Korean ferry and loaded it onto a semi-submersible transport vessel Saturday, completing what was seen as the most difficult part of the massive effort to bring the ship back to shore. Once the ferry reaches land, government officials say it would take about a month for the ship to be cleaned and evaluated for safety. Lee Cheoljo, a ministry official, said workers will spend several hours disconnecting the Sewol from the barges by removing the wires. The government favours cutting off the passenger cabin area and raising it upright before searching for the missing victims, while families fear that cutting into the ship might harm any victims' remains.

Source: Bangkok Post March 25, 2017 03:11 UTC