South Korea says Sewol ferry remains are animal bones

March 28 (UPI) -- South Korea officials say remains found inside the recovered Sewol ferry initially identified as human are animal bones.

The clarification was made Tuesday night, CNN reported.

The findings had raised hopes among victims' families, some of who stayed after watching the sunken passenger ship being lifted out of the water.

Last week, the ferry that sunk off the coast of South Korea in April 2014 returned to the surface for the first time since the accident killed 304 people.

An analysis from Seoul's National Forensic Service showed late Tuesday the bones were from animals, according to South Korea's maritime ministry, Voice of America reported.

The ferry, which is still partly submerged, is being searched for victims' remains.

Some of the victims' belongings were recovered Tuesday, including a pair of shoes.

But the bones that were initially identified as human are likely to be animal bones, most likely pig bones, according to the report.

Earlier on Tuesday, the maritime ministry spokesman Lee Cheol-jo said workers had "found bones of a dead person on the deck," triggering a flurry of news reports.

Kwang Won-jin, another spokesman, retracted the statement and said, "It wouldn't have been easy for those who were at the site to tell whether they belonged to the bones of a human or an animal."

The news brought a wave of disappointment to the victims' families, many of whom have said the investigation should have begun earlier.

The recovery took place two weeks after President Park Geun-hye was removed from office by Seoul's constitutional court.

Park has been blamed in South Korea for her delayed reaction and seven-hour absence during the ferry sinking, although her non-appearance during the disaster did not violate the country's constitution, according to the court.