The Taean Coast Guard on Friday said they have recovered all five bodies of students who had gone missing a day earlier at a seaside summer camp. 

They were found more than twelve hours after the first three bodies were recovered, the Coast Guard said.

The students were found dead after they were swept away by a powerful rip tide along the country’s west coast. 

The students’ deaths sparked widespread criticism of the camp operator for its lack of safety measures.

The five students, all in their second year at a high school in Gongju, South Chungcheong Province, went missing after they were told to jump into the water without life jackets. 

The camp operator had gone against a swimming ban issued by the local authorities in that area of water and similar warnings from local residents.

The Taean Coast Guard said they had been telling beachgoers not to swim near the Baeksajang beach where the camp took place because of the strong tides often detected in the area.

“The area of seashore where the accident happened was where swimming is banned, except for boating,” said Taean Coast Guard chief Hwang Joon-hyun.

Later in the afternoon, the Education Ministry said the Taean camp was being operated without the government’s authorization that guarantees its safety. The ministry has been advising schools to participate in private camps that have obtained state authorization after a series of accidents reported in recent years.

The Coast Guard and police said they received the first report of the incident at 5:34 p.m.

About 80 students attending the camp were wrapping up their training course on Thursday afternoon. As they had some time left until dinner, an instructor ordered them to jump into the water, according to local reports.

Some students who were swimming in the water suddenly began struggling in the strong currents, the report quoted statements from students. 

There were only two instructors in the water and they were not able to save all the students, the report added. School teachers were not on the beach where accident happened. 

The camp operator also was late in reporting to the authorities, which the victims' families claim led to higher casualties.

The Coast Guard and the police are investigating the incident, based on statements from students, instructors, residents and school teachers.

“We are investigating the details of the accident including why the instructors ordered students to swim without lifejackets and whether the camp has violated any law,” he said.

The so-called “marines” summer camp was designed to offer an intensive, three-day training course to teenagers to help them build community spirit and a sense of independence, its operator said.

The Coast Guard found that the camp was being operated by a travel agency which said to have hired instructors who had served in the Marines.

Most instructors hired by the agency lacked qualifications to train kids in areas near the sea. Of the 32 instructors, only five had lifeguard licenses and eight had sea sports licenses. Some were even part-timers, officials said.

To search for the missing students, the Coast Guard deployed four helicopters, 29 patrol ships and 869 rescuers.

By Cho Chung-un (christory@heraldcorp.com)