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Deadly Boat Disasters Follow Severe Rains in Brazil as Navy Opens Inquiry

Investigators are zeroing in on licensing lapses and night‑navigation rules to determine accountability in the Rio Grande crash.

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Overview

  • Six people died when a leisure boat with 15 aboard struck an unlit pier on the Rio Grande between Rifaina (SP) and Sacramento (MG) around 10:30 p.m. on Saturday; nine survived.
  • Police and survivor accounts say the pilot, Wesley Carlos da Costa, 45, lacked the Marinha’s Arrais‑Amador license, and witnesses reported alcohol consumption before departure.
  • Marinha peritos from the Tietê‑Paraná Fluvial Captaincy collected evidence to support an administrative inquiry (IAFN) with an initial 90‑day term, and civil police will interview survivors this week.
  • Authorities note the vessel should not have been operating at night without navigation lights; only three of the victims were using life jackets, and all bodies were released to families after exams at the Araxá IML.
  • In a separate incident tied to severe weather, a boat sank in Ubatuba (SP), killing two and leaving three rescued, as flooding affected roughly 400 homes, closed stretches of the Oswaldo Cruz highway and led to Monday class suspensions at four schools.