Vietnam death boat owner 'had bad record'
AFP
Updated : Mon, February 21, 2011,2:24 PM (GMT+0700)
A Vietnamese tour boat that sank killing 12 people is owned by a company linked to another deadly accident two years ago, police said Sunday, as they wrapped up their probe into the latest tragedy.
The dead, mostly foreign tourists, drowned before dawn on Thursday when their boat suddenly sank as they slept on Halong Bay in Quang Ninh province, one of the country's most popular tourist attractions.
Vu Tuan Hung, of the Quang Ninh water police, confirmed media reports that the boat owner, Truong Hai Co, was involved in another deadly accident in September 2009 when it operated under a different name.
In the previous tragedy a boat of the company's sank during heavy rain, killing three foreign tourists and a local guide, Thanh Nien newspaper reported this weekend.
At the time Thanh Nien said the boat, which was new, had breached several regulations, prompting authorities to pledge stricter enforcement of seaworthiness standards and registration rules.
Hung said officials planned to announce the results of their probe into the latest sinking to foreign ambassadors and families of the victims.
A tourism official has called it Vietnam's worst tourism accident.
"Police investigators continue to find the reasons for the sinking of the boat, and the results of their probe are going to be announced at a meeting on Monday morning," he said.
Attempts to reach the company Truong Hai since Thursday's tragedy have been unsuccessful, but Tuoi Tre newspaper reported that the boat which sank had been in service since 2008.
The crew are being held for questioning by police, but are not formally under arrest.
Initial information from the sailors suggested the boat, "Dream Voyage", sank because of a break in the lower hull, police said.
It took on water so fast that sleeping passengers had almost no time to escape the torrent that filled their cabins.
Nine tourists and six crew survived.
The salvaged boat has been moved to an island and will be transferred to the mainland for further examination, Hung said.
Visitors from the United States, Sweden, Russia, Britain, Japan, France and Switzerland died in the tragedy. An Australian of Vietnamese origin and a tour guide from Vietnam were also among the victims, the official Vietnam News Agency said.
Hung said the bodies of eight foreign victims were returned to diplomatic representatives and relatives on Saturday. Two others would be handed over on Sunday, he added.
Authorities have pledged a safety crackdown after the accident and said they will prosecute anyone responsible.
Travel agents said they feared the crackdown could affect business.
Nguyen Thanh Nga, of Minh Hai travel in Bai Chay, a tourist town on the bay, said the accident had created a "nightmare" for tour operators.
"We have a lot of worries", said Tran Van Tuan, director of Bien Dong travel in Bai Chay. "Of course, the authorities are going to tighten controls on tourism boats."
But an agent at Hanoi's Vietbrand Tourism, who gave her name only as Binh, said bookings were normal, with overnight tours were resuming after a suspension following the accident.
Halong Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage site known for its stunning limestone cliffs, about 160 kilometres (100 miles) east of the capital Hanoi. It attracted more than two million visitors last year.