Thiruvananthapuram: The bodies of a couple from Kollam, who went missing after a tourist boat capsized near Vietnam’s Phu Quoc Island, were recovered on Saturday, police said.
A C Thomas
Lovely Thomas
The deceased were identified as A C Thomas, 58, and his wife Lovely Thomas, 56, residents of Kottarakkara in Kollam.The couple left for Vietnam on a week-long group tour on July 7. According to family members, they remained in touch until Friday. The tourist boat in which the couple were sailing, carrying 32 tourists and four crew members, reportedly overturned off Phu Quoc Island. In the search and rescue operations by Vietnamese authorities, 21 people were rescued, while the remaining passengers were reported dead or missing. Most tourists on board were from south India.Thomas and Lovely were initially reported missing before their bodies were recovered during the rescue operation.Family members said the trip was organised by a private medical company as a complimentary tour. “They travelled to Vietnam on a week-long package tour. We first came to know about the accident through news reports. Later, the tour coordinator informed us that both of them died and their bodies were recovered during rescue operations. We are yet to receive information on when the bodies will be repatriated to India. We are in constant touch with the Indian embassy in Vietnam,” said Thomas’s brother A C Varghese.Meanwhile, Mavelikkara MP Kodikunnil Suresh said he requested the Indian embassy in Vietnam to expedite the repatriation of the bodies of the deceased couple. According to him, the ambassador informed the MP that the embassy would complete the necessary formalities for early repatriation of the bodies and provide all required consular assistance to the bereaved family. The exact date of the repatriation is yet to be confirmed.
