Cremation of Yangtze shipwreck victims completed

BEIJING -- The last of the Yangtze River shipwreck victims was cremated Tuesday morning in Jianli county, Hubei province, where the tragedy took place, the Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA) announced on Wednesday.

All the 2,347 relatives who had traveled to Hubei after the cruise ship disaster have now returned home, the final few left Wednesday morning, the MCA said.

The Eastern Star, which was carrying 403 tourists, 46 crew members and five travel agency staff, was on an 11-day cruise along the Yangtze when a tornado caused it to capsize on the night of June 1.

As many as 442 lives were lost in the tragedy, and only 12 survived.