HANOI, Vietnam – On Sunday, Vietnamese authorities detained Nguyen Hong Hai, the 57-year-old captain of a speedboat that tragically capsized off the southern coast of Vietnam, resulting in the deaths of 15 Indian tourists. The incident occurred on Saturday afternoon, shortly after the speedboat departed from Hon May Rut Ngoai Island, located near Phu Quoc, Vietnam's largest island.
At the time of the accident, the speedboat was carrying 32 Indian tourists and four Vietnamese crew members when it overturned less than half a kilometer (0.30 miles) from shore. The captain is under investigation for purported violations of waterway transport safety regulations, as reported by state media.
Recovery efforts were swift, with 16 survivors having been discharged from the hospital and making their way back to India, according to the Indian Embassy in Hanoi. However, one survivor remains in critical condition at a Vietnamese hospital. The bodies of the deceased are being transported to Ho Chi Minh City for formalities before being flown back to India.
All victims were part of a company trip organized by India’s Lava International, a smartphone and consumer electronics manufacturer, for its employees and partners. Ashish Kumar, a 48-year-old distributor from Guntur, India, recounted that the tourists had split into three groups to travel between islands when he witnessed the accident from the shore. The first boat had already departed, while the other two remained docked when the speedboat capsized.
As the boat flipped over, Kumar recalled, “We screamed, ‘Help! Help!’” Nearby boats raced to the scene, but it was unfortunately too late for some. Ha Van Loc, who was piloting a nearby vessel, described seeing about a dozen people clinging to the overturned hull, while others struggled in the water without life jackets. Despite rough seas with waves reaching up to 3 meters (10 feet), he and his crew managed to rescue four survivors by throwing life buoys and pulling them aboard within 10 minutes.
Loc took immediate action by recording a video of the situation and alerting other boat operators nearby. This prompted a rapid response, with nearly a dozen boats and rescue teams arriving at the scene. However, rough seas complicated rescue operations, making it easier for jet skis to reach survivors than larger boats, which helped bring them to shore one by one.
While passengers reported that the captain advised everyone to wear life jackets before departure, many reportedly held them instead of wearing them. Following the catastrophe, survivors faced a lack of emergency medical care onshore, leading tourists and tour company staff to perform CPR and supply oxygen until emergency personnel arrived. A total of 17 injured individuals were admitted to Phu Quoc Sun Hospital after medical professionals were dispatched to assist.
The Indian Embassy identified that 10 of the deceased hailed from the southern state of Tamil Nadu, three from Andhra Pradesh, and two from Kerala. The incident marks a grim tragedy in tourism, as India is one of Vietnam's fastest-growing tourism markets, with hundreds of thousands of Indian tourists visiting Vietnam annually. In 2025, Vietnam welcomed approximately 750,000 visitors from India, a figure that represents a nearly 50% increase from the previous year.
Hon May Rut Island, situated about 10 kilometers (6 miles) south of Phu Quoc, is famed for its picturesque white sandy beaches and clear waters, attracting millions of both domestic and international tourists each year. Factors contributing to the increase in Indian visitors include a growing network of direct flights between Indian and Vietnamese cities and Vietnam’s liberal e-visa policy, which has made travel more accessible.
