Chinese President Xi Jinping sent his "deep condolences" to victims of a ferry disaster in South Korea, saying China is ready to provide search-and-rescue assistance to Seoul.
In a letter sent to South Korean President Park Geun-hye on Thursday night, Xi said he was "shocked to learn" of the ferry disaster, according to a statement posted on the website of China's foreign ministry.
Xi "expressed deep condolences to the victims and the families of the missing and injured persons," the statement said.
"I'm highly concerned about this. China stands ready to provide the necessary support and assistance to South Korea," Xi said.
The 6,825-ton ferry Sewol, which means time and tide in Korean, was heading to the southern resort island of Jeju when it capsized, two hours and 20 minutes after sending a distress call at around 9 a.m. on Wednesday.
The number of confirmed deaths in the ferry sinking rose to 25 early Friday, as a growing number of bodies were found floating in the sea apparently due to current shifts.
'Slim' hope of more survivors in S Korea Ferry, 28 confirmed dead
Rescuers say there's still a "slim" chance of finding survivors from a ferry that sank off the coast of South Korea two days ago, as the vessel's bow slowly disappeared from view.
More than 600 divers have been hampered in their attempts to enter the sunken vessel due to strong currents and bad visibility. They were finally able to enter the ferry to begin clearing the passage to the dining facility earlier, where survivors say many passengers were at the time of the sinking, the security ministry said. Three floating cranes have also arrived at the site.
"Pulling the ferry up isn't going to be easy or smooth," Kim Jae In, a press officer at the Korea Coast Guard said in Mokpo. "It's completely upside down so if we move it wrong, it may tilt or sink further into the mud. This is something we cannot afford as lifesaving is our top priority, although we're holding onto a slim chance."
Of the 475 people on board, 28 are known to have died and 179 rescued, leaving 268 people unaccounted for. There have been no survivors found since the day of the sinking, which occurred off the southwest corner of the Korean peninsula.
Bodies found overnight and today all had life jackets on and weren't discovered inside the ferry. They may have been trapped under the vessel, the coast guard said.
Authorities are considering using an oil tanker to attempt to slow down the current. Rescuers also planned to pump air into the ferry from 10 a.m. to "increase the odds of survival," the security ministry said in a statement.
In addition to the coast guard, 400 personnel from South Korea's navy, air force and army have been sent to the area to aid the search and rescue. Altogether, 632 divers are working in turns, with 173 ships and 29 helicopters and other aircraft supporting, the security ministry said.
Captain Lee Joon Seok, 69, wasn't at the helm at the time of the sinking as he had assigned a third-ranking officer to steer the vessel, South Korean prosecutors said at a briefing in Mokpo. Investigators are probing whether the ferry turned too quickly or abnormally. They declined to say what announcements were made as the ferry sank, or whether passengers were told to stay in their cabins.
Divers enter capsized ferry in hunt for survivors as death toll climbs to 26
A team of eight divers had entered a capsized South Korean ferry on Friday and was searching for survivors, although they were unlikely to find anyone alive from among hundreds still missing more than 48 hours after the vessel began sinking.
YTN television said that divers had searched the dining hall and cafeteria of the Sewol ferry, where many of the passengers, mostly high school students, were at the time of Wednesday's accident.
The ship is now fully submerged in waters about 25 km (15 miles) off the southwestern coast of South Korea.
Earlier in the day, investigators said that the 69-year old captain may not have been on the bridge at the time the vessel heeled sharply and then capsized.
"He (the captain) may have been off the bridge.. And the person at the helm at the time was the third officer," Park Jae-eok, an official investigating the accident, told a news conference in Mokpo, a city close to the port where rescue operations are being conducted.
It is normal for junior officers to take the helm and the 400 km (300 mile) journey from the mainland port of Incheon to the resort island of Jeju was a regular trip in familiar waters.
The official death toll for the ferry, which capsized on Wednesday carrying 475 passengers and crew, climbed to 26. A total of 179 have been rescued and more than 270 still missing are children from one school on the outskirts of Seoul.
The captain, Lee Joon-seok, faces criminal investigation, which is standard procedure in South Korea.
Both 69-year-old Lee and the company that owns the ship have apologized for the loss of life, although neither has admitted responsibility.
Relatives were in mourning overnight in a hospital in the city of Mokpo, close to the port city of Jindo, which is acting as a rescue center. Some of them spoke bitterly of the captain.
