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SEOUL: Survivors said Wednesday a huge blast from outside tore a South Korean warship apart near the tense North Korean border, discounting theories that an explosion on board or a grounding sank the vessel.
US and South Korean teams are preparing to lift the shattered hull sections from the bed of the Yellow Sea in search of clues to the disaster which left 46 sailors dead 12 days ago.
The disputed border area was the scene of deadly naval clashes between the North and South in 1999 and 2002 and a firefight last November.
Seoul's defence minister has raised the possibility that a mine or torpedo may have sunk the 1,200-tonne corvette Cheonan, reportedly earning a rebuke from the presidential office over his speculation.
The 58 survivors of the blast had been kept under wraps at a military hospital just south of Seoul.
But they appeared in hospital pyjamas at a televised press conference Wednesday as the government tried to rebut claims of a cover-up.
Crewmen described a desperate struggle to escape the stricken ship as they were plunged into darkness.
"I was preparing to report for duty when there was a sound of an explosion which hurt my ears and I was thrown in the air," said Senior Petty Officer Oh Seung-Tak.
"Power was immediately cut. I was hit in the face by a flying computer and lost consciousness momentarily. When I regained my senses, everything was dark."
Oh said he groped in the dark to find the door handle with the ship having tilted sharply sideways, and then cleared debris from the doorway.
"All that crossed my mind at the moment was the images of my family members and that I must rescue myself. I managed to escape about 15 minutes later."
Oh, who was in charge of munitions storage, said he detected no smell of explosives from inside the ship.
"I was sleeping when I heard the sound of a boom," said Chief Petty Officer Kim Soo-Kil. In seconds, he said, he felt the ship tilting sharply. He escaped to the deck using a fire hose.
"When I reached the deck, the moonlight was glittering on the water but the stern had disappeared," he said.
Captain Choi Won-Il, who briefly shed tears, said officers at the time reported an external shock. "It seemed to be a shock from outside."
He was trapped in his cabin until crewmen broke it open, and climbed a fire hose to reach the deck.
The disaster has sparked intense public speculation and a series of Internet conspiracy theories, including a suggestion that the warship hit an underwater obstacle and tore itself apart.
"If a ship hits a rock or a sandbank, it would basically make a tearing sound," said survivor Kim Byong-Nam. "So I believe it was an external shock."
The defence ministry said all survivors had reported hearing one or two booms before the ship tilted.
It said the corvette was on routine patrol at the time, with some off-duty sailors dressed only in underwear.
Civilian and military experts are preparing to lift the hull sections onto huge barges but say the salvage could take weeks.
Strong winds and high waves forced divers Tuesday to suspend work to attach chains to the hull but the dive went ahead Wednesday.
North Korea has made no mention of the sinking and South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak has cautioned against premature speculation.
An online daily has published a photograph of Defence Minister Kim Tae-Young apparently studying a handwritten memo from presidential officials, following his comments last Friday about a possible torpedo attack.
The memo cautions him to stick to the official line that all possibilities for the sinking are being investigated.
- AFP/yb
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