Brazil ferry capsizes, at least 22 dead in second accident this week

RIO DE JANEIRO - 25 August 2017: A ferry carrying roughly 130 passengers capsized in Brazil’s coastal state of Bahia on Thursday, killing at least 22 people, the country’s second fatal maritime accident this week, port authorities told Reuters.

Local authorities said 21 others had been rescued by the navy after the ferry capsized on an early morning trip between Ilha de Itaparica and state capital Salvador.

“Others were rescued by their own means, since the location was not far from the coast and also not so deep,” said Flávio Almeida, a naval captain.

“We are working hard on rescue efforts at the site,” he said.

The governor of Bahia declared three days of mourning in response to the tragedy.

In a separate incident in the northern state of Pará on Tuesday, the death toll rose to 21, with five people still missing, according to a statement on the Pará state government’s website on Thursday.

The statement said 23 people were rescued on Tuesday.

The boat that sank Tuesday was not legally authorized to transport passengers, it said, citing the Regulation and Control Agency for Public Services for the State of Pará.