World briefing
Vanuatu ferry sinking leaves at least one dead, more than 30 missing, PM’s office says
Vanuatu’s government is reducing open-water searches and shifting efforts toward the southeast coast, where currents may have carried survivors.
At least one person has died and more than 30 remain missing after a ferry sank off Vanuatu, Prime Minister Jotham Napat’s office said in a statement.
Napat’s office said 15 passengers and crew members had been accounted for alive. The statement, posted on Facebook, said search and rescue operations were continuing for those aboard the vessel.
The government said it was reducing search operations in open waters and moving efforts toward the southeast coast. It said currents may have carried survivors toward that coastline.
The government’s preliminary assessment pointed to strong winds and marine warnings that may have been ignored, alongside possible negligence involving overloading. It said a full investigation would establish what happened and seek to prevent another sinking.