Photo: China Central Television

A total of 12 passengers were killed following a boat capsize accident in Qinhuangdao, North China's Hebei Province on Saturday. The boat was reported to be an illegally modified tour vessel. The owner of the ship and related responsible personnel have been detained by police.

The incident occurred on Saturday afternoon in Taolinkou village of Qinhuangdao. Thirty-one passengers were onboard at the time of the accident.

The boat was an illegally modified tour boat, according to media reports. Most tourists were elderly tourists, and were not wearing life jackets.

A total of 31 fire trucks, 144 firefighters, four response boats, and 13 rubber boats were dispatched to the scene to lead rescue operations.

An accident investigation group was set up to investigate the cause and responsibility of the accident. The Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection has initiated the relevant work of accountability.

A preliminary investigation revealed that on Saturday, 155 tourists departed Tangshan on three buses organized by a travel agency. They had lunch near Taolinkou village, and 31 of them visited Qinglong River, where they boarded the boat which capsized shortly after departure.

The owner of the boat and relevant responsible individuals are being held by police.

An all-round probe and rectification work is carried out in the tourism industry in Qinhuangdao. Taolinkou village, which is famous for its long history, has been a popular tourist destination since 2008. Lu Chuntian, a village official once said that almost every family in the village owns a boat which they rent out to tourists during peak holiday periods. The village also conducted safety work on tour boats several years ago when the government started water safety awareness work.