100 die as ferry carrying families in Iraq capsized in Tigris river

cde.news desk 21 March 2019, 20:45 · 1 min read

epa07453786 Search and rescue teams look for survivors at the site where an overloaded ferry sank in the Tigris river near Mosul, Iraq, 21 March 2019. According to reports, more than 70 people drowned after an overloaded ferry sank in the Tigris river in Iraq's city of Mosul. EPA-EFE/AMMAR SALIH

France 24 reports that 100 persons died after a ferry carrying families celebrating the Nowruz holiday capsized in the Tigris River near the Iraqi city of Mosul, according to officials.

In a visit to the site of the accident on Thursday, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi ordered an inquiry and said those responsible would be held accountable.

“I was standing near the river back when suddenly the ferry started to tilt left and right, and passengers began screaming before it capsized,” Mohamed Masoud, a local civil servant, told Reuters news agency.

“I saw women and children waving with their hands begging for help but no one was there to rescue them. I don’t know how to swim. I couldn’t help. I feel guilty. I watched people drown.”

Via France 24, Al Jazeera and Reuters

Topics Iraq