At least 13 people are dead due to drowning in the Amazon early Friday morning, after an boat sunk on a tributary near the mouth of the Amazon River. Rescuers picked up about 46 survivors on the overcrowded boat.  Military police Sargent Orivaldo Santos said "We don't know how many people are missing because the captain doesn't know how many were on board."

Santos is heading the rescue operation, in which divers are searching the hold of the vessel for bodies. The captain told police that over 60 people were on board the boat for the ten-hour journey, but the boat only had capacity for 25 passengers.

Strong currents caused the boat to capsize a curve of a Arari River snaking through Marajo Island. The currents were rapid enough that the boat was pulled for over 2 km before it eventually sank to the bottom.

The event occurred early Friday morning, when most passengers were still asleep. The passengers were heading to the market in Belem in order to buy provisions and sell shrimp, fruit, and acai. Belem is a port city, near the mouth of the Amazon river and the capital of the northern state of Para, Brazil.