S. Korea Search for Survivors Turns Grim

A day after the euphoria came the depression.

“We are unable to convey happy news today,” a somber KBS-TV reporter told viewers after the only survivor pulled Sunday from the wreckage of a collapsed Seoul department store never regained consciousness and died 2 1/2 hours later.

Rescue workers, rejuvenated after pulling out 24 people in good shape Saturday night, had been digging at the site of the Sampoong Department Store on Sunday for the fourth night under spotlights.

The possibility that heavy equipment could trigger a collapse of the shaky rubble and a teetering wall meant most of the work was done with small tools or by hand. Officials said if there was no sign of survivors by late today, they would start using cranes again.

Officials have accounted for more than 100 dead in the collapse of the shopping complex Thursday evening. More than 900 were injured.

Symbolic of the sagging emotions was the rescue and death of Lee Eun Young, 21, who worked in a supermarket on the first basement level. A scratching sound from under a metal beam led rescue workers to the semi-conscious woman.

“I thought she was dead because when I touched her hand, it was cold,” said rescue worker Kim Young Chul.

Doctors said Lee’s heart stopped briefly as they performed first aid before she was carried out on a stretcher to applause and cheers from hundreds of people.

The joy was short-lived. Fifteen doctors tried, but failed, to revive her.