TRAGEDY IN HA LONG BAY: At Least 27 Dead After Tourist Boat Capsizes — A Mother’s Heroic Act Ends in Devastating Loss

TRAGEDY IN HA LONG BAY: At Least 27 Dead After Tourist Boat Capsizes — A Mother’s Heroic Act Ends in Devastating Loss

HA LONG BAY, VIETNAM — July 20, 2025

A devastating tragedy has unfolded in one of Vietnam’s most iconic natural landmarks. At least 27 people — including 8 children — have been confirmed dead after a tourist boat carrying families and vacationers capsized during an afternoon cruise through Ha Long Bay on Saturday. Among the victims are local residents and international travelers who had come to witness the bay’s breathtaking limestone cliffs and emerald waters.

Authorities report that 42 people were onboard the double-deck wooden vessel when it encountered sudden, violent weather. Survivors say the boat began to tilt after being hit by a strong gust of wind and high waves that appeared without warning. Within minutes, the vessel began to take on water and flipped, plunging dozens into the sea.

A Mother’s Heroism — and a Heartbreaking Loss

Among the stories emerging from the wreckage is one that has pierced the hearts of the nation: the story of 34-year-old Nguyen Thi Lan, a mother from Hanoi who was aboard the boat with her husband, 8-year-old son Bao, and a close-knit group of fellow families.

As chaos erupted and screams filled the air, Nguyen Lan sprang into action. According to witnesses, she helped pull three strangers — including a teenager and an elderly woman — onto a floating piece of wreckage, urging them to hold on as she searched desperately for her family in the murky, debris-filled waters.

“I kept hearing her shout, ‘Where is Bao? Where is my son?’” recounted survivor Le Tuan Anh, who was clinging to the side of the wreckage. “She was swimming back and forth, pushing people toward safety, even as her own child was lost.”

When rescuers finally arrived nearly 40 minutes later, Nguyen was pulled from the water unconscious, still clutching the life vest she had intended for her son. Bao and her husband, Minh, were later found by divers — both lifeless, their bodies pulled from the depths just meters from where the boat had gone down.

Nguyen is currently recovering in a hospital in Quang Ninh Province, surrounded by family and grief-stricken passengers who say she gave everything she had in those terrifying moments.

“She saved me,” said one teenager, through tears. “I’m alive because of her. And yet she lost her whole world.”

Survivors Question Last Words of the Captain

Adding another layer to the tragedy are the chilling final moments before the boat sank — and the questions now swirling around the actions of the captain and crew.

Several passengers recall hearing the captain shout what many interpreted as a warning or cryptic final statement: “Hold tight — this is the end.” Some say he vanished moments later, leaving passengers to fend for themselves as panic spread.

“I thought he meant the storm,” said a survivor from Australia. “But then he ran, and I never saw him again.”

Authorities have confirmed that the captain, whose identity has not yet been released, is among the missing. It is unclear whether he is dead, escaped, or in hiding. Officials are investigating the vessel’s safety compliance and whether the boat was operating legally under Vietnam’s strict tourist licensing rules.

Children Among the Dead

Among the 27 confirmed dead are eight children between the ages of 4 and 13. Some were on vacation with extended families; others were part of a local school group celebrating the end of exams.

One of the most heartbreaking images to emerge is that of a waterlogged teddy bear recovered by rescue teams — a silent witness to the lives that were cut tragically short.

“I saw tiny shoes floating near me,” one rescuer said. “It was unbearable.”

Government Response and National Mourning

Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has called for an immediate investigation and declared two days of national mourning. In a televised address, he said: “This is not only a tragedy of the sea, but of human loss, of family, of trust. We must find the truth, and we must do better.”

Emergency crews continue to search the bay for possible survivors or bodies still trapped in the wreck. Local fishermen have joined in, offering their boats and knowledge of the water to assist rescue teams.

Vigils have already begun across the country. In Hanoi, hundreds gathered near Hoan Kiem Lake, lighting candles and releasing paper lanterns into the water in memory of those who never made it back from the bay.

A Nation Grieves, and Remembers

For many, this tragedy will forever change the way Ha Long Bay is seen — not just as a destination of beauty, but now also as a place of profound sorrow.

Nguyen Thi Lan’s story, in particular, has become emblematic of the heartbreak and heroism seen on that day. As one online tribute read: “She gave others life while losing her own reason to live. May we never forget the mother in the water, searching for her boy in the storm.”

As Vietnam mourns, questions will be asked, answers demanded, and accountability pursued. But for the families who boarded that boat with dreams of a peaceful escape, the only thing they are left with is silence — and the crashing of waves against a wounded shore.