Vietnam accident: Boat captain arrested, police cite employees’ negligence as cause of accident

HANOI: The captain of the boat that sank in Vietnam, killing 15 Indians, including a Malayali couple, has been arrested. The 57-year-old captain has been arrested, police in An Giang province said. The action was taken after the captain was found to have committed a violation of law. The police said negligence from the side of the crew also contributed to the accident.

Meantime, reports are also emerging that the boat capsized due to extremely bad weather. A local media reported that the sailors engaged in the rescue operations said that although there was no rain at the time of the incident, there were strong waves. Reports say other boats carrying tourists were also in the sea at this time.

There were 32 Indian tourists on the boat. 17 were rescued. One of them is undergoing treatment in a hospital in Phu Quoc in a critical condition. All those who survived the accident have returned home. The embassy has informed that the bodies of the 15 dead will be brought to Mumbai today. The bodies will be brought at 4.30 pm Indian time. Arrangements will be made to transport them to each state from Mumbai.

The dead Malayalees are A V Thomas of Kottarakkara in Kollam and owner of Victory Group, and his wife Launi. The accident happened on Saturday evening. The boat of Minh Huyet Phu Quake Trading Tourism Company met with the accident. The accident occurred 400 meters into the journey while returning from Ngoy Island to Al Tayy Port.