North Korea has launched an investigation into how a new warship ended up on its side and taking on water as leader Kim Jong Un looked on in dismay.
The destroyer was launched on Wednesday but a loss of balance saw the vessel sustain damage, state media reported.
New satellite imagery shows the warship on its side and covered in what appears to be blue tarpaulin next to the dock at a shipyard in Chongjin.
The North Korean leader called it a “criminal act” and said the incident “brought the dignity and self-respect of our state to a collapse”.
An internal inspection found there were no holes at the bottom of the warship, but the starboard hull was scratched and seawater flowed into the stern section through the rescue channel, state media KCNA reported.
The extent of damage was apparently “not serious” and an investigation has been ordered to find the cause of the accident and those responsible for it.
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Hong Kil Ho, the manager of the Chongjin shipyard, was summoned to law enforcement on Thursday as it began measures to detain and investigate those responsible for the failed launch, the report said.
“The stern is seen swung out into the harbour as a result of the wheeled units placed under the frame sliding into the water while the bow remained on the side slipway,” US-based thinktank Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said, citing satellite imagery.
