By Ju-min Park and Dogyun Kim

MUAN COUNTY, South Korea (Reuters) – Empty desks and a calendar marking the days off after Christmas sit in a South Korean office where five co-workers at once plan a holiday in Thailand that ended in tragedy on Sunday when their return Jeju Air flight crashed.

The five female colleagues, who flew to Bangkok to celebrate the promotions, were among the 179 people killed when flight 7C2216 crashed at Muan International Airport in South Korea’s deadliest air disaster.

Still reeling from the loss of their co-workers and friends, colleagues wearing black ribbons wept in their chairs at the public education office Tuesday, as they watched over an empty desk in a you are a victim.

White chrysanthemums were placed on the mourning table, while boxes containing books and stationery awaited another victim who would have moved to the New Year’s tables.

“The feeling is unreal,” said Lee Dae-keun, an official at the Jeollanamdo Office of Education who works in the same department as one victim.

“She still remains in my eyes. Every time I see flowers on that empty table, ah, sadness rushes.”

Reuters did not name the victims at the request of colleagues who asked for privacy.

The deceased employees were an old group of work friends who were looking forward to their long-awaited trip, their co-workers said.

“As a partner, he’s really hardworking and kind, a good partner to others,” Lee sighed. “He always told me to stay happy and positive.”

Lee said he went to the airport with other co-workers to provide food or charge phones for the grieving families of their fellow campers.

At the office, officials set up an altar where colleagues and neighbors came to offer condolences.

Weeping at the altar, Lee Kwi-sun, a chef at the school, vividly remembers the last time he held another victim’s hand.

“We had the same names. We were like long-lost brothers who had just met. So we said we’ll see each other again, and held each other’s hands and laughed and parted ways,” he recalled.

“I talked to him a lot personally and professionally, so it breaks my heart,” he said.