A Hungarian court has ordered the arrest of the Ukrainian captain whose cruise ship collided with a pleasure boat on the Danube, capsizing the boat and killing at least seven South Korean tourists.
The Budapest court on June 1 ordered the 64-year-old captain, identified as Yuriy C. from the Black Sea port of Odesa, for one month.
The captain, who was detained on May 30, one day after the collision, has denied any wrongdoing, and no formal charges have brought against him yet.
Balazs Toth, the captain’s lawyer, told AFP that the court had granted bail, but that prosecutors were appealing forcing his client to remain in detention.
"He is devastated by the number of victims and is asking constantly that condolences are conveyed to their families," Toth said.
It is so far unclear what caused the accident, in which the 135-meter cruise ship hit the smaller pleasure boat in Budapest, causing it to sink.
Officials say seven South Korean citizens survived the crash and seven are confirmed dead. Nineteen South Koreans and two Hungarians are listed as missing and all are feared dead.
Hungarian efforts to recover bodies have been hampered by high water levels.
Serbia and Croatia, which are on the Danube south of Budapest, have been asked to help in the search.
