Chongjin destroyer upright at 'incredible speed' after inaugural debacle

PYONGYANG: North Korea's second-largest warship capsized days after its inauguration ceremony. The 5,000-ton warship, capable of carrying multiple missiles, sank on May 21 putting the authoritarian nation into big embarrassment.

North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un was also present at the ceremony. As punitive measures for the great insult wreaked on his pride, Kim Jong Un ordered the arrest of four people responsible for the debacle. This included Ri Hyong-Sun, a top official of the party's Central Military Commission. The Central Military Commission is responsible for formulating North Korea's administrative policies. Three officials from the shipyard in Chongqing North were arrested in connection with the incident. The chief engineer, construction manager and administrative manager were previously arrested.

Kim ordered the ship to be repaired before the next party meeting. Immediately after the dictator's order, the work began in haste. Satellite images now confirm a surprising amount of progress in this regard. The half-tilted ship was covered with a blue tarpaulin. The new images show that the ship has now been made upright using a large white balloon and a thick rope. This slyly hints that it was manual labour that made the ship upright in record time. The ship is now slightly different from where it was before.

This is the second ship of its kind after the Choe Hyon, which was launched in April. It is not yet clear how much damage the ship sustained. However, it is said that the ship's launching system may have become entangled in the forward hull. However, it is not clear how the problem will be fixed. There is no dry dock at the site of the accident to carry out repairs. The ship cannot be moved anywhere else. It is not known whether North Korea will ask China or Russia for help with a floating dry dock.