N. Korean boat tugged to port after skirmish with S. Korean Navy

(ATTN: ADDS port name, call for help in para 5; TRIMS quote in para 4)
By Sam Kim
SEOUL, Nov. 12 (Yonhap) -- The North Korean patrol boat that retreated in flames
after a skirmish with the South Korean Navy earlier this week was tugged on its
last stretch toward port, an official here said Thursday.
The boat apparently suffered damage when it exchanged gunfire Tuesday with South
Korean naval vessels near the Northern Limit Line that separates the Koreas in
the western waters off their peninsula.
No South Korean sailors were killed, but North Korea reportedly suffered one
death and three sailors wounded. The South Korean defense official who declined
to be named said the North Korean boat managed to near its port on its own after
returning across the border but was tugged on the final stretch.
"Another boat helped it reach the port, but the vessel was in good enough shape
to retreat on its own for most of the journey home," the official said.
"It then appears to have suffered a serious malfunction with navigation, sending
a call for help after nearly reaching Wollae port", from where it had departed,
he said.
The navies of the Koreas clashed previously near the border unrecognized by the
North in 1999 and 2002. Six South Koreans were killed while the North is
estimated to have lost dozens in the skirmishes.
The North Korean boat fired about 50 rounds while the South Korean side shot
hundreds of rounds in the latest skirmish, finishing the battle in just minutes,
according to officials here.
North Korea disputes Seoul's claim that the South Korean forces prevailed,
arguing that a group of South Korean warships intruded upon its waters but were
dealt a blow before fleeing back south.
samkim@yna.co.kr
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