Myanmar ferry capsizes; 20 dead, over a dozen missing

YANGON, Myanmar – A ferry boat capsized in Myanmar’s Ayeyarwaddy delta, killing 20 people and leaving more than a dozen missing, police said.

Thirty people were rescued after the ferry capsized in the Ngawun river at around 7:30 p.m. Friday, police officer Nay Lin Tun said. About 66 people were on the ferry, which capsized after colliding with a boat carrying gravel.

The ferry was going from Pathein to Yakhinekone village. Most of the ferry’s passengers were returning from a wedding ceremony.

Boat accidents are fairly common in Myanmar, where many people travel by boat and government oversight is lax. Poor maintenance and overcrowding makes the vessels prone to capsizing. People living in the delta region often travel and transport goods by boat because of the low cost and the inaccessibility of many areas by road.

In October, 48 people died when an overcrowded ferry capsized during a nighttime run on the Chindwin river in central Myanmar.