Bodies of 15 Indians killed in Vietnam boat tragedy moved to Ho Chi Minh City

The bodies of 15 Indian tourists killed in the Phu Quoc speedboat accident have been moved to Ho Chi Minh City for repatriation. Sixteen survivors are returning to India, while one remains hospitalised as Vietnamese authorities continue investigating the tragedy

Hanoi: The bodies of the 15 Indian tourists who were killed in a speedboat accident off Vietnam’s Phu Quoc Island were taken to Ho Chi Minh City on Sunday, from where they will be flown to India soon, the Indian Embassy in Hanoi said.

The Indian mission also said that 16 of the 17 rescued Indian tourists are on their way back home. One, who is in critical condition, is hospitalised in Phu Quoc. A speedboat carrying 32 Indian tourists and four local crew members capsized near Hon May Rut Ngoai off Phu Quoc Island on Saturday. Fifteen Indian tourists were killed in the incident, while the others were rescued.

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“The mortal remains of 15 Indian Nationals who tragically passed away in yesterday’s boat accident have reached Ho Chi Minh City. After completion of formalities at Ho Chi Minh, the mortal remains would be transported to India at the earliest,” the embassy said in a post on X on Sunday.

The embassy and the consulate teams are closely coordinating with Vietnamese authorities “who are committed to providing all assistance for the earliest transportation of the mortal remains to India”, it said.

“We continue to pray for the early recovery of the one survivor at Phu Quoc Hospital,” it added. Of the 15 victims, 10 were from Tamil Nadu, three were from Andhra Pradesh and two were from Kerala. Two of the deceased were women, according to a list shared by the embassy.

According to the list, the deceased from Tamil Nadu were identified as Senthil Kumar Jayavel, Muruga Prabhu Arumugam, Sridhar Sundararajan, Shaik Abdullah Abdul Majeed, Balaji Natesan, Vinaya Kumar Chithirapuram Bhaskara, Ravisankar Sugumaran, Santosh Kumar Shantilaljain, Babu Kuppuswamy and Alagurajan Sivasamy.

The deceased from Andhra Pradesh were identified as Nallapeta Adiseshaiah Raviteja, Sreedhar Mudiam and Jaya Lakshmi Gelli, while those from Kerala were identified as Avicot Cheriyan Thomas and Loveni Thomas.

The governments in the three southern states have issued helpline numbers to assist relatives of the affected persons. Earlier on Sunday, the Indian Embassy in Hanoi said 16 of the 17 surviving tourists were discharged from the hospital and were on their way to India.

“After obtaining medical treatment, 15 survivors of yesterday’s tragic boat accident have been discharged from hospital and are travelling back to India,” the embassy said in a separate post on X. “Of the two patients in critical care, one has been discharged and is travelling back to India. The other is undergoing treatment at a hospital in Phu Quoc,” it said.

Phu Quoc, Vietnam’s largest island, is a major tourist destination known for its white-sand beaches, coral reefs and island-hopping excursions.

The tourists were reportedly returning from an island visit when their speedboat capsized about 400 metres off Hon May Rut Ngoai island. Nearby tourist boats reportedly rushed to pull passengers from the water before border guards, the navy, the coast guard and other forces joined the search-and-rescue operation. Eyewitnesses told the local media that some of the passengers were trapped inside the overturned speedboat, which made rescue difficult.

The exact cause of the incident is yet to be ascertained. Vietnamese Prime Minister Le Minh Hung has ordered an investigation into the cause of the accident and directed authorities to hold those responsible accountable, local media reported.