Egypt boat rescuers find three tourists alive 30 hours after Red Sea disaster

Boat rescuers attending a horror capsizing in the Red Sea have found three tourists alive – but retrieved four bodies from the wreckage of the Sea Story.

Amr Halfi, the Governor of the Red Sea, announced this afternoon that, following the launch of a rescue operation, two Belgians and an Egyptian were found alive. The ship, which had set sail from Marsa Alam, in Egypt, had 44 people on board, 31 of whom were tourists and 13 of whom were crew members.

The ship capsized on Monday, with emergency services responding to a distress call issued just a few hours after it departed port en route for Hurghada. They were able to retrieve 28 people following the disaster, but several people remain missing. It has been reported that two people among them are British. Nine people are still missing.

The British Foreign Office said in a statement that it is providing consular support to “a number of British nationals and their families” following the reports. Others are reportedly Finnish, Spanish, German and American, with the crew of the Sea Story said to be entirely Egyptian.

There was also an Irish person aboard, the Red Sea governor said, but it is unclear whether they are among those missing. A spokesperson for Poland’s foreign ministry some involved “may have had Polish citizenship”. Chinese nationals are among those who have been successfully retrieved from the wreckage, the nation’s embassy in Egypt said, and they are “in good health”.

The Irish Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement to the Associated Press that it is “aware of this incident and is providing consular assistance”, with Finland’s foreign ministry adding that one of its nationals was among the missing. Investigators are yet to disclose exactly what happened to the Sea Story, but Mr Halfi said people on board the ship at the time it capsized reported a “high sea wave” had hit the boat.

The vessel proceeded to capsized in “about five or seven minutes”, he added, with some passengers struggling to get out of their cabins. The manager of a diving resort close to the operation reported that a surviving crew member had told them they were “hit by a wave in the middle of the night, throwing the vessel on its side”.

The manager, who asked to remain anonymous, added that it was “unlikely that the missing would be rescued after 12 hours in the water”. Mr Halfi said that, following the incident: “Intensive search operations are underway in coordination with the navy and the armed forces.”

The Egyptian Meteorological Authority had warned of high waves in the Red Sea caused by gathering winds that reached speeds of around 37 to 43mph. The organisation advised against maritime activity on Sunday and Monday, when the ship sank. The winds caused wave heights to reach between three to four metres (10-13ft).

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