Three die and two missing while fishing at sea

Three people have died and two others remained missing while fishing at the sea in Binh Thuan Province.

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Binh Thuan General Hospital announced on February 17 that two men from Khanh Hoa Province, Vo Trung Nghia and Nguyen Thanh Tuan, had been rescued and brought to the hospital while floating at the sea the previous night.

Nghia, Tuan and three other friends hired a boat to go fishing on February 15. At 5.15 pm, the group of five friends, the boat owner Le Van Mot, and a crew member Tran Van Be, encountered big waves and strong winds 40 nautical miles away from the shore. The boat’s pump however was broken and the boat sank quickly, forcing everyone to jump into the sea.

Nghia and Tuan said they were able to grab onto a buoy or a piece of foam to stay afloat but Mot and Be were swept away and went missing after jumping down. On the morning of February 16, all three of Nghia and Tuan's friends died from exhaustion.

Binh Thuan Province People's Committee ordered an immediate search and rescue mission to find Mot and Be. Boats working nearby were also asked to look for the missing men.