Captain of sunken South Korean ferry arrested over suspected 'late' evacuation orders

The captain of the sunken South Korean ferry along with two crew members has been reportedly arrested as investigators looking into the matter are inspecting whether his evacuation orders came to late to save lives.

Investigators have reportedly revealed that the tragedy occurred at a point where the ship had to make a turn and prosecutor Park Jae-eok said that investigators were looking at whether the third mate had ordered a turn that was sharp enough to cause the vessel to list.

According to News.com.au, a spokesman for the Maritime Ministry has revealed that it is yet unknown if the sharp turn, which occurred between 8:48am and 8:49am, was done voluntarily or because of some external factor.

The ship captain Lee Joon-seok, who was detained early on Saturday along with the two crew members, is reportedly facing five charges including negligence of duty and violation of maritime law.

Senior prosecutor Yang Jung-jin said that the captain had escaped before the passengers.

The disaster, which occurred three days ago, has reportedly left more than 270 people missing and at least 29 people dead out of the 476 people including 323 students from Danwon High School in Ansan that were aboard the Sewol.

The dark blue keel, which was jutting out over the surface, reportedly sunk by Friday night and divers began pumping air into the ship in an attempt to sustain any survivors, the report added.