A FERRY that served as a watery tomb for over 300 mainly schoolchildren off South Korea has been raised from the sea bed three years after the disaster.

The Sewol sank near the south western island of Jindo on 16 April 2014 in one of the worst civilian maritime disasters in the country’s history.

An operation to winch it from the water has been completed and it is now being slowly towed 55 miles to the shore over the next two weeks.

Families of some of the 304 deceased have been present on the coastline watching the procedure as authorities expect there are at least nine bodies still on board.

“To see the Sewol again, I can’t describe how I’m feeling right now,” said Huh Hong-Hwan, who lost his 16-year-old daughter in the disaster.

The highly complex mission to dredge up the 6,825 tonne vessel was one of the key demands by families to the government, whose lax regulations were blamed for its sinking.

Investigators also said that an inexperienced crew and cargo overloading were key factors.

The ship’s captain, who along with some crew was rescued from the ship, was found guilty of murder.

Ousted President Park was forced to defend herself against accusations that she could not be reached for several hours on the day of the sinking.

These allegations formed part of a wider impeachment bill that saw her booted from office earlier this month.

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