Search for bodies continues as Laos mourns loss of youngsters in ferry accident

Police are continuing the search for the bodies of ten missing school children feared drowned after a cross-river ferry capsized on the outskirts of Laos' capital Vientiane Tuesday morning, with overnight rains serving to swell rivers and hamper efforts.

The ten were among 35 students and four teachers on board when the overloaded vessel capsized in its attempt to cross the Nam Ngum River in the outer urban district of Pak Ngum, some 60 kilometers from Vientiane's CBD Tuesday morning.

Little hope is held for the survival of the missing children on a stretch of the river close to where the 354-kilometer tributary meets the longer and more powerful Mekong mainstream that also marks the nation's border with Thailand.

Speaking to Xinhua, a spokesman for local police said overnight rain had increased river flows, making the search all the more difficult, but promised that efforts would continue in earnest.

Locals are also assisting authorities with the search, many having gathering overnight by the riverside to pray and burn incense for the souls of the missing according to the traditions of the South-East Asian nation.

The incident has again brought attention to the safety of river- going transportation in landlocked and mountainous Laos where waterways continue to be vital yet potentially dangerous features of the landscape to traverse.

The rudimentary twin-hull that capsized is one of countless similar craft of limited capacity plying risky routes linking the banks of the nation's watercourses in the many locations where bridges have not yet been deemed feasible. Endi