Belgian tourist dies in boat accident in Guadeloupe

A 27-year-old Belgian tourist was killed in a boat accident on the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe on Monday. Four other people on the boat were also injured, the local prosecutor's office said.

Nine people were on board the almost 7-metre-long pleasure boat, which had been hired for the day, said French prosecutor Yves Le Clair. The boat crashed into a pillar of a bridge over the Rivière Salée, which lies between the islands of Basse-Terre and Grande-Terre. 

An investigation has been called for violation of shipping regulations resulting in death

"In the collision, five people were thrown from the boat: four were injured, and one died," said another prosecutor. The young Belgian woman had been on holiday in Guadeloupe. An autopsy will be carried out this week. 

An investigation has been called for "violation of shipping regulations resulting in death", the prosecutor said. "We will have to establish whether the person at the helm was the person who rented the boat and, if not, whether he or she had the necessary licences to operate the vessel." The victims were still being questioned on Tuesday. 

^{A river flowing into the sea on the French Caribbean island of Guadeloupe © Christophe ARCHAMBAULT / AFP}