24 dead in Myanmar ferry accident

By Kyaw Ye Lynn

YANGON, Myanmar (AA) – At least 24 people were confirmed dead after a ferry boat capsized in the delta area, officials said Saturday.

The accident occurred late Friday when a cargo ship hit a wooden boat that was carrying about 60 wedding guests on the Nga Wun River near Pathein, about 117 miles (188 kilometers) west of the former capital, Yangon.

A local port authority official said the bodies of mostly women and children have been so far recovered.

“The deaths includes 16 women,” Ko Ko Naing told Anadolu Agency, adding that 30 people have been rescued but at least six people are still missing.

The ferry passengers were returning to a nearby village after attending a wedding ceremony in Pathein, the capital of the Ayeyawaddy region.

“Most aboard are young students as we, people in rural area, usually take family members to a ceremony like a wedding,” Ko Ko Naing said.

Boat accidents are common in Myanmar, where residents who live along the nation's long coastline and flood-prone river systems rely heavily on often-overcrowded ferries for transport.

Seventy-three people died in a ferry accident last October in the country's central region.