9 students drown after river ferry capsizes in Cambodia

By SOPHENG CHEANG
Associated Press

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — At least nine students in southern Cambodia who were crossing a river have died after the boat they were on capsized. Police said four people — two students and two of the boat’s crew — were rescued following the accident Thursday night on the Mekong River southeast of Phnom Penh, and two students were still missing Friday. The Kandal provincial police chief said on his Facebook page that the boat was overloaded and carried no life jackets. The students, who were between 12 and 14 years old, lived on an island in the river and used the ferry for transport almost every day in the rainy season, as did others from their village.