must stay on a sinking ship. many countries like south korea have their own law or follow the safety of life at sea treaty adopted after the "titanic" sank. it doesn't require that a captain stay on board but it does say the captain is responsible for the vessel and his passengers. that same treaty also says passengers should be allowed to evacuate within 30 minutes. remember, the ferry took more than two hours to sink off of south korea. but the passengers were told to stay in place, a warning that may prove to have cost hundreds of lives. randy kay, cnn, new york. we're back again with captain james staples. in your mine, what are the obligations of a captain to oversee an evacuation. >> he's down by duty and honor. that's his responsibility to make sure that the passengers, the paying passengers are safe to get off that vessel. that's his duty.