Six Russian tourists die in a submarine sinking in Egypt.
There were 45 passengers on board, of whom 39 were rescued.
BarcelonaAt least six people have died and nine others have been injured when a tourist submarine capsized in Hurghada, on Egypt's Red Sea coast. Forty-five tourists were on board, according to Egyptian authorities. The governor of the Red Sea province, Amr Hanafi, confirmed that the six dead were Russian nationals and detailed that emergency services were able to rescue the other 39 people on board and that no one is missing. According to Viktor Voropaev, a Russian official in Hurghada, the dead include two infants. Local media report that at least four are critically injured.
The incident occurred at around 10 a.m. Thursday (local time), about a kilometer off the coast of Hurghada, one of Egypt's most popular tourist destinations for its beaches and coral reefs.
The sunken submarine was operated by Sinbad Submarines and was used exclusively for tourist trips. The company notes on its website that it has two of only 14 recreational submarines in the world, offering tourists the chance to travel to depths of 25 meters to explore coral reefs and marine wildlife.
Hanafi stated that the submarine had a "valid license" and that the crew commander has "the necessary academic certificates" to steer the vessel. He did not provide details on the cause of the accident, but indicated that an investigation was opened with the crew to determine what happened.
The Efe news agency reports that the accident was caused by a technical failure in the vessel's engines, which caused it to sink. The Russian insurance company VSK reported in a statement that all the tourists were insured and that the company will cover the necessary medical treatment and their repatriation.
Precedents
In recent months, many tourism companies have stopped or limited trips to the Red Sea due to the risk posed by conflicts in the region, especially for attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels against Israeli vessels or vessels belonging to countries allied with Israel.
In fact, this is not the first incident involving a tourist boat off the Egyptian coast. In November, a boat named Sea Story The ship sank, killing eleven people. At the time, the country's authorities attributed the tragedy to an accident caused by a giant wave that struck the ship, but some survivors pointed to deficiencies in safety measures.
