11 rescued, 34 dead, 8 missing in shipwreck in Ha Long Bay

At 12:55 p.m. on July 19, the tourist boat Blue Bay 58, carrying 48 passengers and 5 crew members, was sailing in Ha Long Bay when it was suddenly caught in a violent storm. By 1:30 p.m., the vessel had lost contact, and at 2:05 p.m., its GPS signal was lost.

According to the Vietnam Navy, as of 8:45 p.m., 28 bodies had been recovered, including 8 children, and 11 people had been rescued (earlier reports had mentioned 12). Fourteen people were still unaccounted for at that time.

By 11:00 p.m., another survivor was pulled from the water, bringing the total number of bodies recovered to 34, with 8 people still missing. Most of the victims were from Hanoi and were traveling with their families, including more than 20 children. The oldest victim was 53 years old; the youngest, just 3.

Rescue efforts continued throughout the night. While waiting for a crane barge to lift the sunken vessel, divers worked in shifts, scouring the water for victims.

Quang Ninh Province has provided initial support to the victims’ families, offering 25 million VND (approx. $1,000 USD) per deceased victim and 8 million VND (approx. $320 USD) per injured survivor. The authorities are also covering all accommodation costs for the families during their stay in the area.

According to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, severe thunderstorms swept across northern Vietnam on the afternoon of July 19. Many areas experienced intense lightning, tornadoes, powerful gusts of wind, and heavy to torrential rain.

The extreme weather was caused by the tropical convergence zone crossing northern Vietnam, combined with high temperatures over the past three days, which created unstable atmospheric conditions and strong updrafts. This system, classified as a tropical supercell thunderstorm (Mesoscale Convective System – MCS), is a mid-sized storm complex known to produce severe rainfall and hazardous weather events.

With the arrival of Storm Wipha, the Gulf of Tonkin, the northern and central East Sea (including the Hoang Sa Archipelago), and the Gulf of Thailand are expected to see showers and thunderstorms from the night of July 19 through July 20. The northern waters of the East Sea may experience scattered severe storms.

On July 20, Quang Ninh province issued an urgent dispatch, requesting to temporarily stop issuing permits to leave ports and wharves for all passenger ships transporting passengers in the province.

Accordingly, all tourist vehicles on Ha Long Bay, passenger ships from the island to the mainland, and between islands must temporarily stop operating from July 20, 2025. This decision ensures absolute safety for passengers, crew members, and vehicles in dangerous weather conditions. Ships on their way back to the mainland to drop off passengers will continue to be licensed to operate.