Sunday, December 22, 2024

Two dead and five missing after boat collision on the River Danube in Hungary

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Two people have died and five are missing after a boat collision on the River Danube, Hungarian police have said.

Officers found a man with a bleeding head on the shore near Veroce, about 30 miles (48km) north of Budapest, on Saturday night.

Police believe he’s a survivor from the incident after the bodies of a man and woman were found nearby.

A hotel boat with a damaged hull was stopped more than 50 miles (80km) further west at Komarom.

Hungarian news site Blikk reported it was 109m (357ft) long and had collided with a motorboat. It said the hotel ship probably travelled from Budapest.

Criminal proceedings have begun against an unnamed individual on suspicion of causing death and endangering water transportation.

The wreck of the smaller boat was found by rescuers near the Megyeri Bridge early on Sunday morning and towed to shore, Blikk reported.

The search for the missing – three men and two women – is said to involve about 90 people using boats, drones and thermal imaging cameras.

The stretch of the river at Veroce, where the survivor was found, is about 460m (1,500ft) wide and a popular recreational area.

It’s also on the route used by many cruise boats travelling between Budapest and Austrian capital Vienna.

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The incident comes five years after 28 people – mainly South Korean tourists – were killed in Budapest when a boat hit a smaller tourist vessel, causing it to sink in seconds.

The captain was found guilty of negligence and sentenced to five and a half years in prison.

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