Regarding the MV Sewol disaster in South Korea, I came across this in Yonhap.

While apologizing to victims and their families, the captain said that it was not true that he failed to instruct passengers to leave the vessel.

“I gave such an order (to passengers to evacuate),” captain Lee told reporters upon being arrested, adding he told the people to remain seated “before any rescue vessels had arrived. The water was cold.”

The 55-year-old steersman who guided the boat with the female mate said he navigated the ship just as he normally does, but the steering gear “turned exceptionally faster than normal.”

Experts and investigators have said a sudden shift of the vessel caused 180 vehicles and 1,157 tons of freight on board to slide to one side, disrupting the balance of the ship.

An official of the probe team also noted that they have almost ruled out a theory that the boat hit a submerged rock, causing the tragedy. Initial reports said the vessel could have hit an underwater rock based upon survivors’ accounts that they heard a big thumping sound before it started to lean.

“It appears that there were no external shocks to the ship,” an officer said, though they have yet to find what made such a thundering sound.

english.yonhapnews.co.kr

Of course, authorities are still performing a search and rescue operation and the ship has yet to be righted. Until then, it’s all speculative; however, a sudden load shift on the car deck could explain that “thumping sound” survivors recall hearing as well as causing the ship toll to port.