PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - At least 17 people were missing and presumed drowned in Cambodia after an overloaded ferry sank in the Mekong river, officials said on Sunday.
The 14 women and three men were traveling to a local Buddhist temple to watch a performance in northeastern Kratie province, about 200 km (124 miles) from the capital Phnom Penh, when their ferry sank in a tributary late on Saturday in strong currents.
"They couldn't wait to see the performance so they all got on the same ferry," Som Sarith, chief of Chhlong district in Kratie province, told Reuters by telephone.
Authorities also removed at least nine motorbikes from the ferry, which went down in an area hit hard by recent flooding.
(Reporting by Ek Madra; Editing by Jason Szep)
The 14 women and three men were traveling to a local Buddhist temple to watch a performance in northeastern Kratie province, about 200 km (124 miles) from the capital Phnom Penh, when their ferry sank in a tributary late on Saturday in strong currents.
"They couldn't wait to see the performance so they all got on the same ferry," Som Sarith, chief of Chhlong district in Kratie province, told Reuters by telephone.
Authorities also removed at least nine motorbikes from the ferry, which went down in an area hit hard by recent flooding.
(Reporting by Ek Madra; Editing by Jason Szep)
3 comments:
perhaps it's a wake up call, really to build more bridges and do not overload the ferry again. think about it. the ferry owner should be sue so they won't overload the ferry again, really! sometimes, it has to take some tragic mishap like this to create law to protect people.
It is unfornate for the victims and their families. With a wish, the govt must look into all of the ferry service for standard safety. I would like to share my condolences with the families.
May their poor souls rest in peace and I hope our gov't has learnt from this incident and try to create a new law to protect everyone equally, e.g. there should be limited numbers of people on each boat, depending on how big or how small it is like, 4.5 metre long * 1.8 metre width and the maximum number of people 5. If anyone breaks the law, he/she should be charged accordingly. Aust
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