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Vietnam Tour Boat Survivor Describes His Escape

Vietnam Tour Boat Survivor Describes His Escape

Yomiuri Shimbun6 days ago
HA LONG BAY, Vietnam (AP) — A Vietnamese man who survived the capsizing of a tour boat in Ha Long Bay described his escape from the overturned vessel.
At least 38 people were killed in the accident and a search is continuing for five who are still missing, according to Vietnamese state media.
The Wonder Sea embarked early Saturday afternoon for a three hour excursion in the popular bay, carrying 48 passengers and five crew. But a storm quickly covered the sky, bringing high winds and pouring rain, survivor Dang Anh Tuan told The Associated Press.
Tuan said the passengers asked for the boat to turn back to shore, but the crew reassured them they were almost at their destination and kept the boat moving forward.
'It rained for about 15 minutes, and then the boat started to shake vigorously, tables and chairs were jostled around and seconds later the boat overturned,' the 36-year-old fire extinguisher salesman said. 'Water gushed in and I lost all orientation.'
'I tried to breathe. But more water came in. I took a deep breath, got rid of my life vest and dove down. I saw a streak of light and followed it to swim out, escaping the boat, and then I climbed on the overturned boat to look for help,' he said.
Tuan and three others survived by clinging on to the capsized boat and its propellers, waited out another two hours until the rain stopped and rescued arrived.
Rescue workers saved 11 people, but one died in hospital due to injuries, VNExpress newspaper said.
The boat turned upside down because of strong winds, the newspaper said. A 14-year-old boy was rescued after four hours trapped in the overturned hull.
The newspaper said that most of the passengers were tourists from Hanoi, including about 20 children.
Tuan was a holiday with 11 university friends, only three of whom survived. Tuan has only minor cuts, but one of his friends suffered multiple injuries in his head and the other's tendons were cut by broken glass as he escaped the boat through a window.
The other nine members of the group were killed, including one who was traveling with his wife and 3-year-old son. The wife and child were also drowned.
A tropical storm is also moving toward the area. A national weather forecast said that Storm Wipha is expected to hit Vietnam's northern region next week, including Ha Long Bay's coast.
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Passenger Plane Crashes in Russia's Far East, Killing All 48 People on Board, Officials Say
Passenger Plane Crashes in Russia's Far East, Killing All 48 People on Board, Officials Say

Yomiuri Shimbun

timea day ago

  • Yomiuri Shimbun

Passenger Plane Crashes in Russia's Far East, Killing All 48 People on Board, Officials Say

MOSCOW (AP) — A passenger plane crashed Thursday in Russia's Far East, killing all 48 passengers and crew on board, officials said. The Angara Airlines flight disappeared from radar, and searchers later found the burning wreckage of the plane on a hillside south of its planned destination in Tynda, more than 7,000 kilometers (4,350 miles) east of Moscow, Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry said. Regional Gov. Vasily Orlov said in a statement that all 48 people aboard were dead, and announced three days of mourning in the Amur region over what he called a 'terrible tragedy.' It wasn't immediately clear what caused the crash. Russia's Interfax news agency said there were adverse weather conditions at the time of the crash, citing unnamed sources in the emergency services. Several Russian news outlets also reported that the aircraft was almost 50 years old, citing data taken from the plane's tail number. The Soviet-designed twin turbo prop plane had initially departed from Khabarovsk before making its way to Blagoveshchensk on the Russian-Chinese border and onwards to Tynda. Images of the reported crash site circulated by Russian state media show debris scattered among dense forest, surrounded by plumes of smoke. Orlov said rescuers had struggled to reach the site due to its remote location, 15 kilometers (9 miles) south of Tynda. An earlier statement from the governor said that 49 people had been onboard the flight, but that number later was updated to 48. The reason for the discrepancy was not immediately clear. The transport prosecutor's office in the Far East said in an online statement that the plane was attempting to land for a second time when it lost contact with air traffic control and disappeared from radars. The authorities launched a probe on the charge of flight safety violations that resulted in multiple deaths, a standard procedure in aviation accidents. Aviation incidents have been frequent in Russia, especially in recent years as international sanctions have squeezed the country's aviation sector.

Passenger plane crashes in Russia's Far East, killing all 48 people on board, officials say
Passenger plane crashes in Russia's Far East, killing all 48 people on board, officials say

Japan Today

time2 days ago

  • Japan Today

Passenger plane crashes in Russia's Far East, killing all 48 people on board, officials say

In this photo taken from video released by Russian Investigative Committee on Thursday, July 24, 2025, a view of the place of the crashed Russian An-24 passenger plane of the Siberia-based Angara Airlines while carrying 49 passengers in 15 kilometers (9 miles) south of Tynda, Far Eastern Amur region of Russia. (Russian Investigative Committee via AP) A passenger plane crashed Thursday in Russia's Far East, killing all 48 passengers and crew on board, officials said. The Angara Airlines flight disappeared from radar, and searchers later found the burning wreckage of the plane on a hillside south of its planned destination in Tynda, more than 7,000 kilometers (4,350 miles) east of Moscow, Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry said. Regional Gov. Vasily Orlov said in a statement that all 48 people aboard were dead, and announced three days of mourning in the Amur region over what he called a 'terrible tragedy.' It wasn't immediately clear what caused the crash. Russia's Interfax news agency said there were adverse weather conditions at the time of the crash, citing unnamed sources in the emergency services. Several Russian news outlets also reported that the aircraft was almost 50 years old, citing data taken from the plane's tail number. The Soviet-designed twin turbo prop plane had initially departed from Khabarovsk before making its way to Blagoveshchensk on the Russian-Chinese border and onwards to Tynda. Images of the reported crash site circulated by Russian state media show debris scattered among dense forest, surrounded by plumes of smoke. Orlov said rescuers had struggled to reach the site due to its remote location, 15 kilometers (9 miles) south of Tynda. An earlier statement from the governor said that 49 people had been onboard the flight, but that number later was updated to 48. The reason for the discrepancy was not immediately clear. The transport prosecutor's office in the Far East said in an online statement that the plane was attempting to land for a second time when it lost contact with air traffic control and disappeared from radars. The authorities launched a probe on the charge of flight safety violations that resulted in multiple deaths, a standard procedure in aviation accidents. Aviation incidents have been frequent in Russia, especially in recent years as international sanctions have squeezed the country's aviation sector. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

Plane with 49 people crashes in Russia's Far East
Plane with 49 people crashes in Russia's Far East

The Mainichi

time2 days ago

  • The Mainichi

Plane with 49 people crashes in Russia's Far East

MOSCOW (AP) -- The wreckage of a plane that crashed while carrying 49 people has been found in Russia's Far East, local emergency services said Thursday. Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry said that they had found the plane's burning fuselage on a hillside south of its planned destination in the town of Tynda. Images of the reported crash site circulated by Russian state media show debris scattered among dense forest, surrounded by plumes of smoke. An initial aerial inspection of the site suggested that there were no survivors, Russia's Interfax news agency said, citing unnamed sources in the emergency services. Its sources also said that there were difficult weather conditions in the area. The transport prosecutor's office in the Far East reported that the site of the crash was 15 kilometers (9 miles) south of Tynda. The office said in an online statement that the plane attempted a second approach while trying to land when contact with it was lost. Forty-three passengers, including five children, as well as six crew members were on board the An-24 passenger plane as it traveled from the city of Blagoveshchensk on the Russian-Chinese border to the town of Tynda, regional Gov. Vasily Orlov said. Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry reported that 48 people were on board the flight, which was operated by Siberia-based Angara Airlines. The reason for the discrepancy was not immediately clear. The authorities have launched a probe on the charge of flight safety violations that resulted in multiple deaths, a standard procedure in aviation accidents.

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