15 drowned in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) boat sinking

OHRID, FYROM, Sep 7 – Albanian President Bamir Topi and Prime Minister Sali Berisha sent their messages of condolences to the FYROM and Bulgarian counterparts for the victims of the incident in Ohrid Lake Saturday where 15 people drowned.
A day later FYROM authorities detained the skipper of an overloaded sightseeing boat that sank in Ohrid Lake, on suspicion of causing the deaths of 15 Bulgarian tourists.
The Ilinden sank rapidly in just six meters of water, about 200 meters from the shore on Saturday in the worst boat accident ever to happen on Ohrid Lake, on FYROM’s western border with Albania. Another 42 people survived.
If prosecutors file a formal charge of crimes against life and property, Filevski could face four to 10 years in prison.
National flags flew at half-staff and all sports and cultural events were canceled on Sunday.
The government said it had invited experts from Croatia and Bulgaria to assist in the investigation. The skipper and his deputy told investigators that a loud crack was heard toward the rear before the boat sank rapidly.
There were 57 passengers on board. That is more than the boat’s 42-person capacity.
The vessel, which was built in 1924 in Germany, had been traveling from Ohrid, on the lake’s eastern shore, to the medieval Eastern Orthodox monastery complex Shen Naum, about 30 kilometers (20 miles) south, near the Albanian border. Most of the passengers were Bulgarian.
Lake Ohrid itself נthe deepest in the Balkans, located along the mountainous border between FYROM and Albania נhas been a UNESCO world heritage site since 1979.