A 35-ton fishing vessel capsized off the coast near Gunsan, a southwestern port city in North Jeolla Province, resulting in the deaths of three people onboard, the Korea Coast Guard said Monday.

The Coast Guard successfully rescued all eight people from the capsized vessel. However, three of them -- the Korean captain, the Korean chief engineer and an Indonesian sailor -- were transferred to hospitals but later pronounced dead.

The remaining five survivors, which include three Vietnamese and two Indonesian crew members, are reported to be safe.

The Coast Guard received the report of the accident at 7:36 a.m. and quickly launched a rescue operation. Authorities are investigating the possibility of a collision, as witnesses reported that a 1,618-ton petroleum product carrier had passed by the vessel.

"We have not yet been able to identify the deceased foreign sailor," a Coast Guard official said, adding they plan to investigate the exact circumstances of the accident once the injured have recovered. (Yonhap)