Seven dead, 13 lost after boat capsizes

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta, Thursday July 31 2014,


A boat carrying dozens of passengers was overturned in waters near Sei Berombang, Panai Hilir district, Labuhanbatu regency in North Sumatra on Wednesday night. So far seven people were found dead and 13 others were pronounced missing, Panai Hilir district staff member Hafifuddin said on Thursday.

"The incident happened at around 11:30 p.m. and the boat was carrying 48 passengers from Tanjung Ledong to Sei Berombang," he told Antara news agency, adding that officials still did not know why the boat capsized.

The passengers on board were returning to their hometowns in Sei Berombang and Labuhan Bilik in the Panai Hilir district. Authorities rescued 28 of them.

The bodies of the seven confirmed victims were brought to the Sei Berombang community health center to be identified. Six of the victims were children, while one was an adult.

"We found the first two bodies at around 10:20 a.m., three others at 10:40 a.m. and the remaining two at 11:25 a.m.," Hafifuddin said, adding that he did not know the names of the victims because he was still working on location.



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