Fishing boat sinks in Red Sea, at least 13 dead

According to sources from Egypt’s Ministry of Health, at least 13 fishermen have died as a result of a collision between a container ship and a fishing boat in the Gulf of Suez.

The confirmed fatalities rose from 11 on Sunday morning, to 13 by the afternoon.

Citing security sources, AP reported that 45 fishermen and crew members were on board the fishing boat “Badr al-Islam” when it collided with a Panamanian flagged cargo ship in the Gulf of Suez early on Sunday. However, AFP reported that a total of 40 individuals were on board when the boat sunk.

According to the state-owned Middle East News Agency (MENA), 13 bodies were retrieved from the Red Sea, while another 13 were rescued alive.

MENA reported that of the 13 survivors, seven were in good condition, while six were admitted to hospital in the southern Sinai town of Al-Taur. The bodies of the 13 deceased fishermen were reportedly being preserved in morgue freezers.

The total number of fishermen and crew are still unaccounted for, although MENA added that search and rescue operations are still underway.

The collision was reported to have taken place between Ras Ghareb in mainland Egypt and the town of Al-Taur in the southwest of the Sinai Peninsula.

According to MENA, the container ship that collided with “Badr al-Islam” was carrying over 200,000 tons of cargo from Italy to the port of Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. Several news agencies reported that the ship was diverted to Egypt’s mainland Red Sea port of Safaga, where it is anchored, pending investigations.

The privately owned Al-Watan Newspaper reported that Egypt’s Ministry of Social Solidarity is offering compensations amounting to LE1,000 ($US140) for each of the injured survivors on board “Badr al-Islam,” and LE5,000 ($US700) to the families of each of the deceased.