At least 37 people have been confirmed dead and several others remain missing after a tourist boat capsized in Vietnam’s Ha Long Bay during a sudden and violent storm on Saturday afternoon.
The vessel, named Wonder Seas, was carrying 53 passengers—mostly Vietnamese families visiting from Hanoi—when it encountered a powerful storm with torrential rain, hail, thunder, and lightning, according to Vietnam’s Border Guards and navy.
An eyewitness told AFP that the sky darkened around 14:00 local time and described “hailstones as big as toes” before the storm intensified, overturning the vessel in the bay, a popular UNESCO World Heritage Site in Quang Ninh province.
Despite the heavy weather hampering rescue efforts, 11 people have been pulled from the water alive. Among them was a 10-year-old boy who survived by finding refuge in an air pocket inside the upturned hull.
“I took a deep breath… dived, then swam up. I even shouted for help, then I was pulled up by a boat,” the boy, who had been travelling with his parents, told state media outlet VietnamNet.
Local news outlet VNExpress reports that at least eight of the confirmed dead were children. The search and rescue operation is continuing through the night, with many still unaccounted for.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh extended condolences to the families of the victims and called for an investigation. In a government statement, authorities pledged to “strictly handle violations” and determine the cause of the disaster.
Ha Long Bay, known for its towering limestone islands and emerald waters, attracted four million visitors in 2019 and remains one of Vietnam’s most visited tourist destinations.
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