"40 die as small ferry sinks in Vietnam
Relatives grieved yesterday after a Vietnamese river boat sank while taking shoppers to a market for Tet holiday shopping. (STR/AFP/Getty Images)
HANOI - A small ferry overloaded with holiday shoppers sank in central Vietnam yesterday, killing at least 40 people ahead of the traditional Lunar New Year.... An initial investigation showed the wooden boat was overloaded with nearly 80 people, though it was designed to carry only 12.
Searchers recovered 40 bodies, including 27 women - three of whom were pregnant - and seven children, he said. The people from Quang Hai village were crossing the river to buy things for the Lunar New Year festivities. Known as Tet in Vietnam, the new year is the country's biggest holiday and begins today....
The boat was only 65 feet away from the river bank when it began to take on water, apparently from the weight of too many passengers, Ha said.
Horrifying!
