Egyptian rescue teams have recovered the bodies of four missing people after the sinking of a tourist boat that occurred this Monday, as confirmed on Tuesday by the governor of the Red Sea province, Amr Hanafi, Reuters reports. At the same time, three people – two Belgian nationals and one Egyptian – were rescued alive. The boat, 34 meters long and named the Sea Storyoverturned in front of the Egyptian city of Marsa Alam (southeast of the country), on the west bank of the Red Sea. Authorities have indicated that at least 31 of the 45 occupants who were on board have survived; five of them, Spanish. The search for the 10 missing occupants continues off the east coast of Egypt.
He Sea Story He set sail on Sunday from Porto Ghalib, in Marsa Alam, for a diving expedition that would last six days. The weather conditions were not good and, in seven minutes, the high waves – between 3 and 4 meters high – sank the boat, where the Red Sea Governorate estimates that 16 passengers were trapped. The winds reached 34 knots (63 kilometers per hour), equivalent to a “hard wind” on the Beaufort Scale, a measure that classifies the intensity of the wind. Egypt’s Red Sea Port Authority has closed maritime traffic and reported that the weather has hampered rescue efforts, which were suspended overnight on Monday.
After it capsized, authorities deployed helicopters and an Egyptian Navy frigate, managing to rescue 28 people with minor injuries. There were 31 tourists on the boat, of German, American, Slovak, Swiss, Belgian, Polish, Norwegian, Irish, Finnish, Spanish and Chinese nationality, as well as 31 members of the Egyptian crew. The incident occurred, as confirmed by Hanafi, at 5:30 (local time, one less in mainland Spain), at which time the boat issued an alarm signal and a call for help. The ship – which had passed its last safety inspection in March without reporting problems – was due to return to the Hurghada marina this Friday, November 29.
The boat would have sunk near the Sataya Reef, also known as the “dolphin reef.” This place is an important tourist destination, where there are dolphins, as well as fish, turtles and sharks. In June, another ship sank in this area, after suffering significant damage from strong waves, without causing any fatalities. The tourism industry plays a fundamental role in the economy of the African country.
