HCMC – A motorboat transporting 39 people capsized today, February 26, while en route from Cu Lao Cham Island to Hoi An City of Quang Nam Province, leaving 13 people dead and four others missing.
At 2 p.m., the motorboat of Phuong Dong Travel Company overturned when it was about three kilometers away from the Cua Dai Seaport in Hoi An. The 39 people on board included 36 tourists and three crew members, the local media reported.
Most of the victims wore life jackets at the time they fell into the sea. Some 400 people and 29 vehicles, including lifeboats, canoes, boats of the coast guard and fishing boats of locals have been mobilized to search for the missing victims.
Phan Viet Cuong, secretary of the Quang Nam Party Committee, said that the four missing people included two children. The victims who have been saved were sent to the Hoi An and Pacific hospitals.
One of them was later transferred to a hospital in Danang City for treatment, said director of the Quang Nam Department of Health.
By 6:20 p.m., the search for the missing victims was suspended as it was dark and waves were high, posing a danger to rescue forces.
Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh has ordered Khuat Viet Hung, vice chairman of the National Traffic Safety Committee, and leaders of the Ministry of Transport to Quang Nam to coordinate with the local authorities to address the consequences of the incident
The deputy prime minister has also ordered the mobilization of equipment, vehicles and human resources to search for and rescue the missing victims and treat the injured.
In addition, the competent agencies must quickly investigate the incident and impose heavy sanctions on individuals and organizations responsible for the incident.
