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Charter boat capsized off New Zealand
Photo: Str / dpa
Five people died in a boat accident off New Zealand's South Island.
Your charter ship may have collided with a whale on Saturday, Kaikoura Mayor Craig Mackle told the New Zealand Herald.
The marine mammals are native to the area, and the sea was completely calm at the time of the accident.
The police initially did not want to confirm this information, but emphasized that the boat must have collided with something.
She first wanted to question witnesses: Six inmates survived the accident.
The group is said to have been on a birding excursion and traveled from all parts of New Zealand to bird watch.
The forces spoke of an "unprecedented" tragedy.
sbo/dpa