“이것보다 더 큰 것도 올라와요” 하루 3시간 자며 7일간 갈치 낚는 어부들｜극한직업

"Even bigger ones come up than this!" Fishermen sleep merely 3 hours a day, fighting rough waves for 7 days straight to catch hairtail fish. ● Part 1: Hairtail Fishing Fighting fierce storms, the 29-ton Haekwangho prepares to leave Seogwipo Port for a showdown with hairtail fish. Their target destination is a 5-hour sail away off the coast of Jeju. Before departure, the chief engineer never forgets the traditional sea ritual, pouring liquor into the ocean to pray for a bountiful harvest and safe voyage. Using frozen Pacific saury as bait, hooking each piece onto countless sharp needles is a daunting task in itself. Once casting begins across the 51km fishing area, the crew must work with lightning speed. When hauling begins 3 hours later, disappointment strikes as predator-damaged hairtail continually surface. Captain Yoo Tae-ho laments that while hairtail fetched up to 500,000 KRW per 10kg five years ago, the price has plummeted to less than half, around 220,000 KRW. To maximize sleep by even an hour, crew members take turns eating quick meals. They also thoroughly thaw frozen saury for the next day's bait. It isn't until past 11:00 PM that they finally lie down, yet with another haul scheduled shortly, their total sleep is restricted to just 3 to 4 hours. By the second day, thick fog blankets the ocean. Captain Yoo monitors the radar with extreme tension to avoid collisions. At 1:00 AM, the crew wakes up for casting, visibly exhausted and bleary-eyed. As daylight breaks, winds grow dangerously harsh, eventually severing the main fishing line! Luckily, the veteran crew locates the lost line within 30 minutes, but only a couple of hairtail emerge. As the ocean turns increasingly treacherous under a gale warning, will the Haekwangho safely complete its mission? ● Part 2: Hairtail Fishing The dazzling silver hairtail is the reward of over 20 hours of grueling labor each day. On the second night, crisis strikes as impenetrable fog envelopes the pitch-black ocean. With small boats lacking radar posing constant collision hazards, Captain Yoo remains on high alert. Waking up after barely 3 to 4 hours of rest at 3:00 AM, the crew fights severe drowsiness while casting lines—a perilous job where a single lapse in focus near sharp hooks can cause serious injury. Afterwards, they snatch brief catnaps directly on the boat deck, fearing that sleeping in the quarters might cause them to oversleep the next haul. Suddenly, waves cresting over 4 meters crash down as an official gale warning is issued. The grueling work done all night risks being completely undone. Heavy winds and surging waves drag down hauling speeds, compounded by cold, relentless rain. Yet, the crew presses on silently. By day four, clear skies finally return. Relieved after a night of intense focus, Captain Yoo hands the helm to the chief engineer to rest briefly. As if rewarding their hardship, abundant fresh hairtail begin surfacing. To secure peak market value, they quickly transfer the catch to a returning vessel. Meanwhile, Chief Engineer Han Nam-soo performs emergency welding on deck after an anchor component falls off—proving that everyone on board must be a jack-of-all-trades. In a momentary lapse, he injures his toe, yet like most fishermen living at sea, there is no time to treat injuries or chronic back pain when catches must be secured. Proper preservation is key: packing ice into the hairtail's belly and head maintains maximum freshness. During a rare moment of rest after stowing fish in the cold hold, crew member Kim Pil-soo peels a melon for a Chinese crewmate, showcasing the warm camaraderie that keeps them going. Facing skyrocketing fuel costs, the sea remains their sole livelihood and unyielding hope. On day seven, the Haekwangho docks back at Seogwipo Port. But faces are grim; the poor harvest fails to cover skyrocketing operating costs. Driven by necessity, the captain orders an immediate return to sea. Though disappointed to lose promised family time, the crew accepts their reality. Working over 20 hours a day through unpredictable weather and painful separations from loved ones, they refuse to yield to despair—for the sea calls them back again tomorrow. Program Title: Extreme Job - Hairtail Fishing Parts 1 & 2 Air Date: June 18 & 19, 2008 #ExtremeJobs #HairtailFishing #JejuIsland #Fishermen #OceanDocumentary #DeepSeaFishing #RoughSeas #KoreanDocumentary #MaritimeLife #DangerousJobs #FishermanLife