Boat In Fatal Accident Operating Illegally

An Amazon boat that capsized killing 30 people was not licensed to carry passengers, authorities said Monday.

Survivors of Saturday’s accident alleged that the boat’s captain and crew were drunk during most of the daylong trip.

The Commandante Rogerio sank only 18 yards from shore after hitting a tree trunk some 60 miles from Manaus, a port on the Amazon about 1,800 miles northwest of Rio.

The boat was carrying 100 passengers and a cargo of cement, bricks and beer.

Police said most of the passengers who died were crushed under the weight of the cargo.