Transcript reveals crew's confusion when South Korean ferry sank

The South Korean ferry that sank was crippled by confusion and indecision soon after it began listing, a transcript has revealed.

The transcript released of communications with the ferry gives details about crippling confusion and indecision, with a crew member questioning whether an evacuation was the right move as the ship began listing dangerously.

According to news24, a crew member on the ferry Sewol asked Jindo Vessel Traffic Services Centre (VTS) at 09:24, local time, about half-an-hour after the ship began listing, if the ferry evacuates passengers.

That followed several statements from the ship saying it was impossible for people aboard the ship to even move, and another in which it said it was 'impossible to broadcast' instructions.

An unidentified VTS official urged just before the Sewol asked about the prospects for rescue to give passengers life jackets.

The VTS official said that the captain should make a final decision and evacuate the passengers, as he knew the situation better.

According to the report, the official added that the patrol boats would arrive in 10 minutes, but did not mention that another civilian ship was already nearby and had said 10 minutes earlier that it would rescue anyone who went overboard.

The captain initially ordered passengers to stay in their rooms, and took more than half-an-hour to issue an evacuation order - an order several passengers have said they never heard.

More than 50 bodies have been recovered, about 250 people remain missing and only 174 are known to have survived.