Relatives Tremble as Vietnam Wreck Rescue News Arrives

Disaster on Vietnam’s Renowned Bay Shakes Families Await News

Families gathered beside ambulances on the quay of one of Vietnam’s most visited tourist sites, anxious for updates about loved ones aboard a tourist vessel that overturned on Saturday, killing dozens.

Melancholy Tribute to the 37 Victims

• Fruits and flowers were laid along the coast in tribute to those who perished in what locals described as Ha Long Bay’s gravest catastrophe.
• Rescuers continued salvaging the sunken boat into Sunday morning, with a handful of survivors still missing.

“Wonder Sea” Traveses with 53 Passengers

The tourist vessel, called “Wonder Sea,” carried 53 people, including more than 20 children, around the UNESCO World Heritage Site, according to state media.

Relatives Rush from Hanoi to Quang Ninh

Hoang Quang hurried from Hanoi to Quang Ninh province at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday for news of his cousin and her family who were aboard the canoe when it capsized. The couple—a housewife and fruit seller married to a bus driver—had “tried their best” to afford the trip around the world‑famous bay.

Hoang told AFP:

“They found the body of (the husband), not my cousin yet.” He was “so shocked” when he heard news of the incident and immediately went to the wharf with other worried family members. “Suddenly the victims were my relatives—anyone would be scared. We didn’t know what to do, except to keep waiting.”

“We think that as we are all here, she knew and she would show up. We are all so anxious… We just wish and pray for her to come back here to us.”

Worse Accident Ever? The Guard’s Painful Night

By early Sunday, the wreckage had been towed into the wharf, and 11 people had been rescued and taken to a nearby hospital.

Security guard Nguyen Tuan Anh spent the night on the wharf where ambulances were waiting to carry the bodies away—a scene he described as painful. “I don’t think I have experienced this scene before. This may be the worst accident ever in Ha Long Bay,” he told AFP, adding it was unpredictable and also I think unpreparable.

“The whirlwind came so sudden and so big. The wind blew off the framework of a big stage for a grand music show nearby,” he said.

Ha Long Bay: The Premier Tourist Destination

Ha Long Bay remains one of Vietnam’s most popular tourist destinations, attracting millions each year to its blue‑green waters and rainforest‑topped limestone islands.

Several hundred rescuers—including professional divers, soldiers, and firefighters—joined the search for survivors through the night and heavy rain, state media said. “The whirlwind came just so sudden,” a rescue worker, who asked not to be named, told AFP on Saturday.

“As the boat turned upside down, several people were stuck inside the cabin. Me and other rescuers pulled up two bodies and rescued one.”

“The accident was so devastating.”