7 dead after tour boat sinks in Hungary

BUDAPEST, Hungary -- Rescue crews in Hungary's capital were preparing to raise a sightseeing boat from the bottom of the Danube River Thursday as search teams scoured the waters for 21 people missing after the vessel, packed with South Korean tourists, collided with a larger cruise ship and sank.

Seven people are confirmed dead and seven were rescued, all of them South Koreans, Hungarian officials said. Hungary's state TV reported all those rescued have been released from the hospital except one who's being treated for broken ribs. Police launched a criminal investigation into the incident.

A South Korean group on a package tour of Europe -- including 30 tourists, two guides and a photographer -- were on an hourlong sightseeing tour of Budapest when their boat collided with a Viking cruise ship amid a downpour Wednesday evening.

Nineteen South Koreans and two Hungarian crew members -- the captain and his assistant -- remain missing.

A map released by Hungarian police showed the locations and times the seven bodies were recovered, with one body found nearly 7.5 miles downstream, nearly three hours after the collision.

"Those contributing to the search will continue to do everything possible ... along the full Hungarian stretch of the Danube's coasts in the interests of the locating the missing persons," Budapest police said in a statement, adding the river was flowing at speeds of about 6 miles per hour.

Officials said preparations to bring up the 70-year-old boat, which was built in the former Soviet Union, could take days.

The sunken boat was located early Thursday near the Margit Bridge, not far from the neo-Gothic Parliament building on the riverbank.

Video released by Hungarian police showed the sightseeing boat, identified as the Mermaid, traveling closely side by side and in the same direction as a German-built Viking cruise ship as they approached the bridge Wednesday night.

The Mermaid then appeared to steer slightly to its left, into the path of the 443-feet-long cruise ship, which continued to sail on at the same speed. The two collided and the sightseeing boat was then seen tipping on its side between the bridge's two supports.

"As the Viking comes into contact with (the Mermaid), it overturns it and in about seven seconds, as it turn on its side, it sinks," Police Col. Adrian Pal said.

Pal said it's unclear what caused the Mermaid to steer into the path of the Viking. He said several people aboard the boat fell into the water after the collision. The South Korean government said none of those on board was wearing a life jacket.

Police said rescue operations were hampered by the rain and the fast flow of the rising Danube. The search for the 21 missing extended far downstream, even into Serbia, where the Danube goes after leaving Hungary.

The river, which is 500 yards wide at the point of the accident, was fast-flowing and rising as heavy rain continued in the city. Water temperatures were about 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

Hajoregiszter.hu, a local ship-tracking website, lists the Mermaid as having been built in 1949 in the former Soviet Union. The Viking Sigyn was built this year, according to cruisemapper.com.

CCTV footage recorded Wednesday night showed the river was busy with boats of different sizes traveling in both directions.

Budapest has enjoyed a boom in overseas tourism in recent years. Long-haul flights from as far away as Dubai and Beijing increasingly fly visitors from Asia and the Middle East to the Hungarian capital, a relatively affordable but history-rich European destination.

Earlier, the news website Index.hu said one of those rescued was found near the Petofi Bridge, about 2 miles south of Parliament.

Police have questioned the Ukrainian captain of the Viking ship, but no details have been released. Authorities said both vessels' captains are experienced, with many years of service with their companies. South Korean officials said the tourists were not wearing life jackets.

Relatives and a team of 25 official rescue workers were on their way from South Korea to Budapest Thursday. The team of fire, navy and coast guard workers includes some who had been involved in rescue operations for the 2014 South Korean ferry disaster that killed more than 300 people -- one of the country's worst maritime accidents.

Seoul's presidential Blue House said President Moon Jae-in has called Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban to discuss rescue operations. Moon thanked Orban for the Hungarian government's rescue efforts, and requested further support for efforts to find the missing, treat the survivors and recover bodies.

The Blue House said Orban told Moon more than 200 divers and medical staff are involved in the rescue efforts and officials are planning to locate and hoist the ship.