S Korea to extend detention of ferry captain

[JINDO, South Korea] South Korean prosecutors investigating last week's ferry disaster said yesterday that they wanted to extend the detention of the captain and two other crew members by 10 days as they try to determine the cause of an accident that likely claimed more than 300 lives.

The Sewol ferry was on a routine 400-km voyage from Incheon to the southern holiday island of Jeju in calm weather on Wednesday, carrying 476 passengers and crew, among them 339 children and teachers on a high school outing.

Divers gained access to the hull of the Sewol for the first time overnight and the number of those confirmed dead rose steadily throughout yesterday by 23 to 56 dead with 246 still listed as missing. A clearer picture started to emerge of the time around the capsize with the release by coastguards of a conversation between vessel controllers and the ship.