Latest Drownings News

Longtime AP journalist, newspaper publisher John Brewer dies at age 76

Apr. 20, 2024 15:09 PM EDT

John Brewer, whose coast-to-coast journalism career spanned 50 years, including nearly two decades at The Associated Press, has died. He was 76. Brewer and his longtime friend Randy Johnson were on their annual fly fishing trip in Montana on Friday when the boat Brewer was in hit a...

At least 20 dead after a ferry sinks in Central African Republic, witnesses say

Apr. 20, 2024 13:11 PM EDT

BANGUI, Central African Republic (AP) — At least 20 people have drowned in Central African Republic after a ferry sank while carrying passengers on a river, witnesses said Saturday. The wooden ferry was carrying more than 300 people to a funeral over the Mpoko River in the...

2 people smugglers sentenced to 9 years each in Spain for drowning deaths of migrants

Apr. 18, 2024 07:07 AM EDT

MADRID (AP) — Two people smugglers have been sentenced to nine years each in prison for the deaths of four Moroccan migrants who drowned after they were forced to jump out of a boat last year near the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in North Africa, prosecutors said Thursday. The...

Today in History: April 18, San Francisco’s great earthquake sets off fires, thousands die

Apr. 18, 2024 00:01 AM EDT

Today is Thursday, April 18, the 109th day of 2024. There are 257 days left in the year. Today’s Highlight in History: On April 18, 1906, a devastating earthquake struck San Francisco, followed by raging fires; estimates of the final death toll range between 3,000...

A neglected burial ground for migrants on Greek island of Lesbos has been given a drastic overhaul

Apr. 17, 2024 13:05 PM EDT

LESBOS, Greece (AP) — Most drowned making the hazardous sea crossing from nearby Turkey, while others died of natural causes in migrant camps on the Greek island of Lesbos. After years of neglect, a makeshift burial ground for migrants on the island has been cleaned up and...

8 family members die in Mozambique’s latest capsizing, a week after another killed nearly 100 people

Apr. 16, 2024 12:28 PM EDT

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — At least eight people from one family have died after their homemade boat sank in central Mozambique, state media reported Tuesday. Monday's sinking on a tributary of the Zambezi River in Sofala province came days after nearly 100 people, many of them...

Rescuers search for 3 missing after boat capsizes in Indian-controlled Kashmir, killing at least 6

Apr. 16, 2024 06:07 AM EDT

SRINAGAR, India (AP) — Rescuers scrambled Tuesday to find three missing people after a boat carrying at least 15 capsized in a river in Indian-controlled Kashmir, killing six of them, officials said. Many of the passengers were children and six people were rescued, said Bilal...

Today in History: April 16, Martin Luther King Jr. writes 'Letter From Birmingham Jail'

Apr. 16, 2024 00:01 AM EDT

Today is Tuesday, April 16, the 107th day of 2024. There are 259 days left in the year. Today’s Highlight in History: On April 16, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote his “Letter from Birmingham Jail” in which the civil rights activist responded to a group of...

China detains 2 over tourist boat capsizing that killed 12, citing lack of safety equipment

Apr. 14, 2024 00:18 AM EDT

BEIJING (AP) — Two people have been detained following the capsizing of a tourist boat on a river in northeastern China that led to the drowning deaths of 12 visitors, state media reported Sunday. The accident occurred Saturday afternoon outside the city of Qinhuangdao near the...

Overcrowded ferry capsizes off Mozambique's coast, leaving at least 98 dead, media reports say

Apr. 08, 2024 17:14 PM EDT

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — A makeshift ferry overcrowded with residents reportedly fleeing a feared cholera outbreak capsized off Mozambique's northern coast, killing at least 98 people including children, local media said Monday. The ferry with an estimated 130 people aboard...