Sinking leaves 'little hope' of finding more alive

Russian authorities last night said there was little hope of finding any more people alive after an overloaded tourist boat sank in the Volga River, killing as many as 128 people in Russia's worst river accident in three decades.

Eighty were rescued on Sunday after the Bulgaria, a double-decked river cruiser built in 1955, sank in a broad stretch of the river in Tatarstan.

Emergency situations minister Sergei Shoigu told President Dmitry Medvedev that little hope remained of finding survivors.

As many as 60 of the passengers may have been children, Russian media reported, and survivors said some 30 children had gathered in a room near the stern of the ship to play just minutes before it sank.

"Practically no children made it out," survivor Natalya Makarova. She said she had lost her grip on her 10-year-old daughter as they struggled to escape.

"We were all buried alive in the boat like in a metal coffin," said Ms Makarova, who escaped through a window.

Russia has a history of deadly accidents stemming from lax implementation of safety rules, from fires to plane crashes and mining disasters.

One relative told regional official Grigory Rapota: "You cannot bring the children back. But find their bodies. I don't want money from you, I want to take them into my hands and bury them in peace."

Cruises on the Volga, which cuts through the heart of Russia hundreds of miles east of Moscow and drains into the Caspian Sea, are popular attractions.

Mikhail Korbanov, the editor of Russia's River Transport magazine, said the sinking was the most deadly river accident since the Alexander Suvorov crashed into a railroad bridge on the Volga in 1983, killing at least 176 people.

Mr Medvedev said the sinking would not have happened if safety rules had been observed.

"According to the information we have today, the vessel was in poor condition," he told a meeting of senior ministers at his Gorki residence outside Moscow.

Seeking to deflect possible criticism of the authorities ahead of the March presidential election, he called for a "total examination" of passenger transport vehicles in Russia.

The regional Emergencies Ministry said they had raised 55 bodies, five of whom were children, but divers said they had seen more bodies trapped in the restaurant cabin of the Bulgaria, a 78-metre craft the ministry said was designed for up to 140 passengers.

The boat had 208 people on board, including 25 unregistered passengers, Mr Shoigu said.