A cargo ferry carrying oil barrels reportedly sank at the confluence of the Chindwin and Uru rivers near Ngauksar village, Homalin Township, Sagaing Region. The cargo ferryboat sank after a wave hit the boat during heavy rain. All five crew members onboard the ferry survived the incident.
The ferry was en route from Monywa when the cargo vessel went down.
A police official told, “The boat capsized just past 9am near an intersection of the Chindwin River and Uru Creek. The captain of the ferry Kyaw Zin Tun faces a lawsuit for overloading the boat”.
The ferry named ‘Lin Lin Aung’ ferried oil barrels, rice bags, iron pipes and other goods from Monywa to Homalin. It is reported that goods worth Ks 8 million drifted away whereas 100 barrels of diesel were recovered.
A local monk reported, “We were able to salvage some goods that were onboard but some drifted down the river. So far, the sinking boat has yet to be salvaged. No fatalities have been reported. Firefighters and police have arrived there. Residents are also providing help”.
This incident comes almost exactly one month on from the tragedy of the overloaded Aung Soe Moe Kyaw 2 ferry. The unlicensed passenger boat, which also ran between Monywa and Homalin, was dangerously overloaded and sank after hitting a rock on October 15 killing 70 passengers.
The locals and passengers reported that these incidents occur frequently due to regularly overloading of ferries.
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Source: Myanmar Times
