Representatives of the Vietnamese Embassy in the Republic of Korea (RoK) came to Tongmyeong city to meet the families of six Vietnamese fishermen who are missing following a boat fire off the coast of country.

A fire breaks out on the 29-tonne fishing boat offshore Jeju Island.
(Photo: Yonhap/VNA)

The Vietnamese embassy’s representatives also met with local police and search and rescue forces.

The city’s authorities have helped with accommodation and travel fees for the families of the missing fishermen. Search and rescue updates are being provided twice a day.

On November 21, part of the vessel was retrieved by the RoK’s maritime police, and it was set to be transported to Jeju island the next day.

According to the RoK Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 11 family members of the missing Vietnamese fishermen had registered to travel to the country.

The fire off Jeju island on November 19 killed one person and left 11 missing, including the six men from Vietnam.

A fire broke out on the 29-tonne fishing boat at around 7:09 a.m. in waters some 76 kilometres west of a small island that is located near Jeju Island, according to the RoK maritime police.