116 Fatalities Confirmed in Russia's 'Bulgaria' Riverboat Incident

A woman grieves during a ceremony of commemoration of victims of the Bulgaria cruise boat sinking at the river port in Kazan, Tatarstan, Russia 12 July 2011.. EPA/BGNES

At least 116 people have perished in the sinking of the "Bulgaria" riverboat on the Volga River, the Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation has announced.

The investigators have concluded in a communique that the "failure on part of the operator to obey the safety norms have led to the deaths of at least 116 people", as cited by Russian news agencies.

Rescue units have discovered the bodies of some 30-40 children's inside a nursery on the vessel.

Russia's Minister of Emergency Situations Sergey Shoygu has announced that the Bulgaria riverboat will be pulled out of the water on July 16, 2011.

The "Bulgaria" boat sank in the middle of the river in the Volga region near the village of Syukeyevo in the Kansko-Ustinovsky district of the Republic of Tatarstan on Sunday afternoon.

The double-deck ship was built in the former Czechoslovakia in 1955 and is designed for 140 passengers, according to the site of the company that owns it.

Latest data say that a total of 205 people were on the Bulgaria vessel when it overturned on Sunday and sank in just 3 minutes.

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