8 dead, 1 missing after boat sinks in Central China

Rescuers try to pull a wrecked boat out of the Zijiang river in Central China's Hunan province, Feb 22, 2015. The boat with 18 people on board sank the Jiugongqiao section of the river on on Saturday afternoon, leaving eight people dead and another one missing. [Photo/xinhuanet.com]

CHANGSHA - Eight people have died and one is still missing as of 4 p.m. Sunday after a boat sank in the Zijiang River in central China's Hunan Province on Saturday afternoon, local authorities said.

The accident happened around 4 p.m. Saturday when a private boat with 18 people on board sank on the Jiugongqiao section of Zijiang River. Nine people have been rescued.

Tang Huilong from Tanghong Village, Jiugongqiao Township, Shaoyang County, had borrowed the boat from his neighbor to take his family to visit the Taohua Island, 700 meters away from Tang's house. The boat sank on its return journey.

Among the dead and missing were a 61-year-old and a one-year-old infant. Seven of the nine rescued people have been discharged from hospital.

The preliminary investigation shows that the boat, 12 meters long and 1.5 meters wide, got into difficulty due to the strong current.

"Because of the rapids, the boat suddenly lost balance and started to sink and everybody fell into the water," one survivor said, whose husband died as a result of the accident. He had managed to rescue his daughter but failed to save his son before his own drowning.

According to an official with local maritime bureau, the boat, which is not authorized for commercial operation, should only carry at most eight passengers.

Search and further investigation is undergoing.