World

Nearly 200 Killed in Burma Boat Wreck

TRAGEDY

Only one survivor.

cheats/2013/05/14/nearly-200-killed-in-burma-boat-wreck/130514-burma-boat-capsize-cheat_sx0z7o
Monks wait for ferry in Yangon on Monday. (Khin Maung Win/AP)

A boat capsized off the coast of Burma late Monday, killing nearly 200 people on board—although United Nations officials said there was one survivor. Burmese authorities said the vessel struck rocks off the coast, although other reports indicated that one big boat was towing two smaller boats without engines. The passengers were fleeing the oncoming Cyclone Mahasen, which is expected to hit Thursday and Friday and the U.N. has warned could lead to “life-threatening conditions.” Burmese authorities reportedly moved over 5,000 people from low-lying areas to Sittwe, the capital of the western Rakhine province. Nearly 20,000 Rohingya Muslims are living in Pauktaw in Rakhine after fleeing last year’s ethnic violence.

Read it at Al Jazeera English