(VOVworld) – The first three corpses of the South Korean capsized ferry were discovered on Saturday, three days after it sunk in the country’s southwestern territorial waters.

South Korean Coast Guard and rescue teams search for missing passengers at the site of the sunken ferry off the coast of Jindo Island (Photo: mirror.co.uk)

The bodies were found in the fourth deck. Divers have tried overnight to make their way into passenger compartments on the third and fourth floors of the five-storey vessel.  But they had yet to enter into the passenger cabins due to difficulties in opening the doors, low visibility and darkness Around 87 passengers stayed at the cabins on the third floor, with 353 put up on the fourth floor and seven on the fifth floor.

The same day, SEWOL captain Lee Joon-Seok was arrested. He said he delayed the passengers’ evacuation out of the submerged ferry due to the harsh weather conditions and there were no rescues ships or fishing boats.

By 10 p.m. local time of Friday, the death toll increased additional 29 people while 274 others are still missing and 174 were rescued.