NEED TO KNOW
- Multiple people, including eight children, are dead after a boat capsized
- The incident took place in Vietnam’s Halong Bay on Saturday, July 19
- The ship had been carrying around 48 passengers and five crew members at the time of the accident
Nearly three dozen people are dead after a boat capsized, according to multiple reports.
At least 34 people, including eight children, died after the ship overturned in Vietnam’s Halong Bay amid stormy weather at around 2 p.m. local time on Saturday, July 19, VNExpress, the Associated Press and Reuters reported.
The boat, named the Wonder Sea, had been carrying around 48 passengers and five crew members. A majority of the travelers on the boat — including the estimated 20 children on board — were from Vietnam’s capitol Hanoi, per VNExpress and the AP.
So far, 11 people have been rescued after they were found near the scene of the incident, while others remain missing, according to the outlets.
One of the individuals rescued was a 10-year-old boy, who was unconscious and admitted to a nearby hospital with several injuries, per VNExpress.
A 14-year-old boy was also rescued by first responders after getting trapped in the overturned hull of the boat, VNExpress and the AP reported.
“Although the ship had overturned and the cabin doors were locked, there was still an air pocket … enough for oxygen to get in, so the boy survived,” Bui Cong Hoan, the deputy head of the Ha Long Cruise Ship Association, told VNExpress.
The boat capsized due to heavy winds, the local Vietnam outlet reported. Lightning and heavy rain was also reported in the area, per Reuters and the AP.
Authorities were dispatched to the scene, along with 27 boats and two rescue crafts, according to VNExpress. Rescue divers searched several areas of the boat, including the cabin and other surrounding areas, the outlet said, but their efforts were made difficult by the weather.
Vietnam’s Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh later issued an “urgent dispatch,” according to the Vietnam News Agency.
The politician “extended his heartfelt sympathies to those affected and expressed deep condolences to the families of those who lost their lives.”
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Tropical storm Wipha, which recently hit the Philippines and China’s southern coast, is expected to also pass through Vietnam’s northern region and Ha Long Bay’s coast next week, the AP reported.
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