SEOUL, March 28 (Yonhap) -- Military divers were to try again Sunday to reach a sunken ship as hopes were diminishing that there may be more survivors from one of the country's worst naval disasters in history. The 1,200-ton South Korean Navy corvette Cheonan carrying 104 crew went down late Friday near the Yellow Sea border with North Korea after an unexplained explosion that officials and witnesses said split the vessel in half. Fifty-eight of them, including the ship's captain, were pulled out alive, and 46 are still missing. A North Korean attack was initially suspected, but officials now say that is unlikely.
An 86-member ship salvage unit from the Navy was continuing to search the waters Sunday for the sailors still unaccounted for and who are believed to have sunk with the boat, but strong wind and rough waves continued to dim hopes of a successful rescue.
"We are hoping to be able to go underwater today," a military official said, a day after the divers failed to reach the sunken vessel that is protruding from the shallow waters about 24 meters deep. Officials said waves carried the ship down about four miles from where it originally sank.
Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said an explosion appears to have torn a hole in the rear of the vessel, shutting off the engine and taking the ship down in less than three hours. Officials remain cautious about the cause, however, until specialists are able to reach and investigate the craft.
After visiting the disaster site Saturday, Defense Minister Kim Tae-young told the press that the government is "yet to track down the exact cause behind the tragedy."
"The vessel appeared to have been split into half," he said. "But making predictions is meaningless in this situation, I believe. Please bear with us."
The Seoul government is refraining from any comments suggesting Pyongyang's involvement in the incident. Military officials are narrowing down the possibilities to the vessel's collision with a rock, a torpedo attack from outside forces, including North Korea, or an internal explosion due to the gunpowder and explosives the ship was carrying.
The Navy plans to salvage the sunken vessel for investigation to determine what caused the incident, a long process that may take at least 20 days, officials said.
The sunken vessel, 88 meters long and 10m wide, was put into service in 1989 and was equipped with missiles and torpedoes, according to Navy officials.