Hanoi: The mortal remains of the 15 Indian nationals who died in the tragic boat accident in Vietnam’s Phu Quoc Island will be transported to India from Ho Chi Minh City on Monday, said the Indian Embassy in Vietnam.
As many as 15 people, including 10 tourists from Tamil Nadu, were killed after a tourist boat carrying Indian visitors capsized off Phu Quoc Island on Saturday, turning what was intended to be a reward trip into a devastating accident.
The Vietnam Airlines flight VN979 is scheduled to leave Ho Chi Minh City at 6:00 p.m. local time and reach Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (BOM) at 9:35 p.m. (Indian time).
In a statement on X, the Indian Embassy said, “The mortal remains of the 15 Indian nationals who tragically lost their lives in the 11 July boat accident will be repatriated from Ho Chi Minh City to India today via Vietnam Airlines flight VN979. The flight is scheduled to depart Ho Chi Minh City at 1800 hrs local time and arrive at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (BOM) in Mumbai at 2135 hrs IST.”
“The respective state governments have been informed and have been requested to kindly coordinate with the affected families for the onward journey of the mortal remains to their final destinations. The Embassy in Hanoi and the Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City pray for the family members of the deceased. We are available for any assistance,” it added.
Meanwhile, Vietnamese police in southern An Giang province on Sunday detained and initiated criminal proceedings against a local man over alleged legal violations linked to the tourist boat that capsized.
The detainee was identified as 57-year-old captain Nguyen Hong Hai, a resident of Thuan Tien hamlet in Son Kien commune, An Giang province, who was temporarily residing in the Phu Quoc special zone.
According to preliminary reports, the boat was carrying around 32 Indian tourists, including 17 from Tamil Nadu, while the remaining passengers were from Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Kerala.
The vessel reportedly overturned while cruising in waters south of Phu Quoc, a popular tourist destination in southern Vietnam.
Soon after the incident, rescue teams, local residents, and emergency personnel rushed to the scene and launched a large-scale rescue operation.
Several passengers were pulled from the water, while rescuers administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to those found unconscious in an attempt to save their lives.
Despite the swift emergency response, authorities confirmed that 15 people lost their lives in the accident, while the survivors were rescued and provided medical assistance.
The exact cause of the accident has not yet been officially disclosed.
