Disaster at the launch of a large war ship in North Korea. Kim Jong One: A criminal act that cannot be tolerated / what happened to the 5,000 -tonne destroyer
The launch of April, in North Korea, of the destroyer Choi Hyun. Photo: SOPA IMAGES / DDP USA / Profimedia
A major accident occurred on Wednesday while launching a new large North Korean war ship, while Kim Jong Assist at the event, the Phenian leader declaring that this is a “criminal act” that cannot be tolerated, the KCNA state news agency, taken over by Reuters, reported.
Kim, who witnessed the failed launch of the 5,000-ton destroyer, criticized the accident as caused by a “negligence” that stained the country's dignity and ordered the ship to be repaired before the major June meeting of the North Korean Party.
The North Korean state press did not specify whether the accident caused victims.
What happened, according to the North Korean press
KCNA said that the incident in the port of Chongjin in the northeast of the country was caused by a loss of balance of the ship while launched on the water and said that sections of the bottom of the war ship were crushed, but did not provide more details about the damages suffered.
“Kim Jong has made a hard assessment saying that it was a serious accident and a criminal act caused by absolute negligence, irresponsibility and unknown empiricism, which is outside the limits and cannot be tolerated,” writes in the article.
Kim said that the accident “led to the collapse of our state's dignity and respect”, adding that the immediate repair of the destroyer “is not only a practical matter, but also a political issue directly related to the state authority.”
According to the South Korean army, the damaged war ship was lying after the accident on one side, after the failure.
The disclosure of the accident, rare thing for Kim Jong regime
The public disclosure of the accident, a rare thing for the North Korean regime, comes after the Phenian announced last month the launch of another similar-size destroyer, to which Kim also attended, at the Nampho shipyard on the West Coast.
North Korea has also been confronted with accidents, such as failures of space launches and civil disasters, notes Reuters.
The 5,000 tonne destroyers launched by North Korea this year are the largest war vessels of the country so far.
In a report last week on the preparations for the last launch, the US website 38 North wrote that it seems that the ship will be launched laterally on the keys, a method that has not been observed in North Korea.
“The use of this method of launch could be a necessity, because the key where the ship is built does not have a slope” to move the ship with the stern in the water, it is shown in material 38 North.
The commercial satellite images of the shipyard one day before launch showed the destroyer positioned on the keys, with the support vessels next to it and with the loaders of the open missile tubes.
An expert in North Korea established in Seoul appreciated that the incident was disclosed by Phenian was surprisingly fast.
“This again shows Kim Jong's style of government to prevent the spread of negative rumors and control officials with more force, being rather open than hidden,” said Cheong Seong-Chang of the Sejong Institute.
