On July 19, a large-scale tragedy occurred in the famous tourist Halong Bay in the north of Vietnam – an excursion boat capsized during an unexpected storm. According to official information, at least 34 people died, eight more are considered missing. This is reported by a local publication VNExpress and BBC.
Despite difficult weather conditions and heavy rains, rescuers managed to pull 11 passengers out of the water alive. Among those rescued was a 10-year-old boy who survived in an air cavity inside the upturned hull of the boat.
According to the message of the Vietnamese border service, there were 53 people on board the Wonder Seas ship – 48 tourists and 5 crew members. Most of the passengers were residents of Hanoi, many of them traveling as families. There were more than 20 children on the boat at the time of the accident. At least eight of the bodies found were children.
The disaster happened suddenly: the storm rose quickly, and the ship did not have time to return to a safe zone. Search and rescue efforts are ongoing, but progress is slow due to showers and low visibility in the bay.
Prime Minister of Vietnam Pham Minh Chinh expressed his condolences to the families of the victims. The government promised to conduct an investigation and bring to justice those responsible for possible violations.
“Any negligent actions will be thoroughly investigated,” – says the official statement.
Halong Bay, where the tragedy happened, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the country’s most popular tourist destinations. In 2019, the region was visited by about 4 million tourists.
