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7 dead, 21 missing after SKorean tour boat sinks in Hungary
TIWN
7 dead, 21 missing after SKorean tour boat sinks in Hungary
PHOTO : TIWN

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP), May 30 (TIWN) — Rescue workers scoured the Danube River in downtown Budapest Thursday for 21 people missing after a sightseeing boat carrying South Korean tourists sank after colliding with a larger cruise ship during an evening downpour. Seven people are confirmed dead and seven were rescued, Hungarian officials said.

The South Korea-based Very Good Tour agency, which organized the trip, said the boat was on its way back after an hourlong night tour on Wednesday evening when the accident happened.
 
Nineteen South Koreans and two Hungarian crew members are missing. The tour party had consisted of 30 tourists, two guides and a photographer on a package tour of Europe. Pal Gyorfi, spokesman for the National Ambulance Service, said those rescued were hospitalized in stable condition.
 
The sunken boat was located early Thursday near the Margit Bridge, not far from the neo-Gothic Parliament building on the riverbank.
 
Officials said searchers were checking the Danube for miles (kilometers) downriver. The river was fast-flowing and rising as heavy rain continued in the city. Water temperatures were about 10 to 12 degrees Celsius (50-53 degrees Fahrenheit).
 
Earlier, the news website Index.hu said one of those rescued was found near the Petofi Bridge, which is about 3 kilometers (2 miles) south of Parliament.
 
Dozens of rescue personnel, including from the military and divers, were involved in the search. Employees from the South Korean Embassy in Budapest were assisting Hungarian officials in identifying those rescued and the deceased.
 
South Korean President Moon Jae-in instructed officials to employ "all available resources" to support the rescue efforts in Hungary. Moon's spokeswoman, Ko Min-jung, said in Seoul that Moon also ordered the launch of a government task force led by Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and for officials to maintain close communication with the family members of the South Korean passengers.
 
A team of South Korean officials left for Hungary on Thursday to assist with the rescue operations and support passengers and their families. Kang was also to travel to Hungary.
 
The ministry in a briefing Thursday said that the Seoul government will closely cooperate with Hungarian officials so that the rescue efforts can proceed swiftly and effectively. It said the tourists were not wearing life jackets.
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