Seven people have been killed and others are missing after a tour boat capsized on the iconic Danube River in Budapest.
The double-decker boat, with dozens of tourists on board, was moored near the Hungarian parliament building when it was hit by another tourist boat about 9pm local time, Reuters reported.
The boat, Hableany (or “Mermaid”), capsized and sunk, Hungarian news website Index.hu said. The Danube River, which cuts through the middle of the Hungarian capital city and is a major attraction for tourists, had been flooding with strong currents after heavy rain.
Local news outlets are reporting 33 people, including tourists from Asia and crew, were on board the sunken boat.
Seven people have been confirmed dead so far.
About 14 people have been retrieved from the flooding river, seven of them dead.
One person was successfully rescued after they were found near the Petofi Bridge, more than 3km south of the parliament building, Associated Press reported.
Hundreds of rescue workers are on the scene but their efforts have been hampered by heavy rain, flooding and currents on the Danube River, where the water temperature is as low as 10C.
Police have closed access to the bank of the Danube River on the Pest side of the city, east of the river.
The boat was a 27-metre double-decker boat with a capacity of 60 people.
Sightseeing boats are a popular tourist activity on the Danube River, which is lined by some of Budapest’s most famous landmarks including the parliament building, Buda castle and Liberty Statue.
