Cruise ship capsized on Han River operating without license

Ambulance took the victim to the hospital

Tourist boat capsizes, people still missing

As reported, at 8:00 p.m. on June 4, on the Han River opposite the Novotel Hotel, a tourist boat carrying about 50 visitors on the Han River suddenly capsized.

The tourist boat that met with the accident is named Thao Van 2, registration number DNa - 0016, piloted by Le Cong Chi, residing in An Hai Bac, Son Tra. The ship's owner is Mr. Vo Quoc Hung, the inspection certificate was issued on May 19, 2016, valid until November 20, 2016.

Upon receiving the news, authorities dispatched four ambulances, many rescue boats and dozens of soldiers to the scene.

At around 10:38 p.m., authorities rescued 20 people, and four children were taken to the intensive care unit. At the scene, the Fire Prevention and Rescue Police Department on the River under the Da Nang Fire Prevention and Rescue Department pulled the damaged boat to shore and checked for victims.

By 11:05 p.m., 36 victims had been rescued. It is known that there were 19 people from the same family, many children and foreigners on board. Da Nang General Hospital received 18 people, and the Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital received 11 children from the accident.

Some victims were taken to hospital for emergency treatment.

At 11:10 p.m., the Da Nang Maternity and Pediatrics Hospital was treating 11 victims of the capsized boat. All were children, the oldest was 11 years old, the youngest was about 3 years old. Of the 11 children, 9 were in stable health and conscious.

Two children in particular suffered from severe respiratory failure and required intensive care and mechanical ventilation. Doctor Son said that the health of these two children has a high recovery rate, but they need to be monitored further.

At 11:30 p.m., the leader of the Da Nang City Border Guard said that 42 people had been rescued, and the boat owner was brought up in critical condition. At the time of the accident, the boat was standing in the middle of the river to show visitors the fire-breathing Dragon Bridge.

At 1:05 a.m. on June 5, hospitals in Da Nang received 29 victims out of a total of about 50 victims on board. Of these, 6 have been discharged, 23 others are still being monitored at hospitals, and 3 are still missing.

At 1:20 a.m., Mr. Huynh Duc Tho, Chairman of Da Nang City, arrived at the scene and held an urgent meeting. 43 people were confirmed to have been rescued. At least 3 victims are still missing, including 2 children of Ms. Dang Thi Xuan in Bac Can and 1 man in Hanoi.

The victims pulled ashore are still in shock.

Tourist ship Thao Van 2 has not been licensed to operate.

Mr. Huynh Duc Tho, Chairman of the People's Committee of Da Nang City, said that the Thao Van 2 ship with registration number DNa 0016 is owned by Mr. Vo Quoc Hung and is operating illegally.

Mr. Tho affirmed that he would investigate why the ship was operating illegally in front of the border guard station and openly selling tickets to transport passengers on the Han River without the city's authorities knowing. "The city will handle the responsibilities of those involved as soon as possible," Mr. Tho said.

According to the Chairman of the People's Committee of Da Nang City, the ship DNa 0016 was inspected on May 19, within 6 months, but has not yet applied for an operating license at the Department of Transport. "The ship was originally a fishing boat that was renovated for business," Mr. Tho informed.

After the accident, ship owner Vo Quoc Hung left the scene, but the border guards took him to the border station along with captain Le Cong Chi to assist in the investigation.

Mr. Hung said that there were 38 people on board when the boat sank. However, authorities determined that there were at least 46 people on board at the time, of whom 43 may have been rescued.

The Thao Van 2 boat had a capacity of 28 seats. According to many witnesses, not only did the boat carry more people than the prescribed number, but the passengers were not instructed to move to the second floor. "It is possible that the passengers were not sitting properly, causing the boat to lose balance and capsize. Because when the boat sank, there was no strong wind, nor did it collide with any other boat," said victim Dang Duy Hung (from Bac Can).

Many cruise ship owners on the Han River said that Thao Van 2, because it was converted from a fishing boat, is currently the smallest cruise ship on the Han River. This is the second time Thao Van 2 has sunk. Previously in 2014, Thao Van 2 was carrying 10 tourists on the Han River when it sank, fortunately the victims were rescued.

According to Capital Security