North Korea says damaged destroyer under repair

During its hasty efforts to repair the aftermath of a warship launch gone awry, North Korea found the director of the ruling party's Munitions Industry Department responsible for the failure.

North Korea's state media said Monday its new destroyer that was damaged last week during a launch attempt was under repair, adding that the North detained another official in connection with its investigation into the warship accident.

The investigation group reported its work to the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party on Sunday, and the law enforcement organ summoned and detained Ri Hyong-son, vice department director of the party's Munitions Industry Department, over the accident, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

The destroyer tipped over and became partially submerged during its launch ceremony in the eastern port city of Chongjin last Wednesday, sustaining damage to its hull.

Attending the event, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un decried the accident as an intolerable "criminal act," blaming it on "absolute carelessness" and "irresponsibility" and ordering the ship's restoration within June.

On Thursday, Hong Kil-ho, the manager of the Chongjin Shipyard, was summoned by legal authorities, and on Saturday, key executives at the shipyard — including Kang Jong-chol, chief engineer of the Chongjin Shipyard; Han Kyong-hak, head of the hull construction workshop; and Kim Yong-hak, deputy manager for administrative affairs — were arrested one after another, according to legal authorities.

The action was taken based on data from the investigation group, the KCNA said, describing Ri as "greatly responsible" for the accident.

"At the scene of the destroyer launch accident, the work for completely restoring the balance of the warship is being actively conducted under the technical guidance of an expert group according to its schedule," the KCNA said.

The KCNA said that work to restore the balance of the warship is actively underway at the accident scene under the technical guidance of an expert group and in accordance with the schedule.

BY Yonhap, LEE JI-YOUNG [[email protected]]