CAIRO An Egyptian passenger ship carrying about 1,300 people sank in the Red Sea during bad weather, and rescue ships arriving at the scene pulled dozens of bodies from the water, an official said Friday. At least 30 people were rescued, some in lifeboats.
Ayman al-Kaffas, a spokesman for the Egyptian Embassy in London, told the British Broadcasting Corp. that "dozens of bodies of victims" had been pulled from the choppy waters between Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
The 35-year-old ship, Al-Salaam Boccaccio 98, went down 40 miles off the Egyptian port of Hurghada
The cause of the disaster was not immediately known, but there were high winds and a sandstorm overnight on Saudi Arabia's west coast, where the ship departed from. The ship sailed from Dubah, Saudi Arabia, at 7 p.m. Thursday and was scheduled to arrive eight hours later at Safaga, Egypt, about 190 kilometers, or 120 miles, away.
The ship disappeared from radar screens shortly after sailing, maritime officials in Suez said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press.
The agent for the ship in Saudi Arabia, Farid al-Douadi, said the vessel was in good condition. The passengers were mostly Egyptians but included Saudis, Sudanese and others.
Marzouk said the ship - built in 1971 and renovated in 1990 in an Egyptian shipyard - was carrying 1,318 people, including a crew of 96. The ship is owned by an Egyptian firm, El-Salaam Maritime Transport.
Ship sinks in Red Sea; 1,300 passengers missing, IHT/AP
Egyptian ferry sinks in Red Sea, BBC
Google Earth Locations: ferry path, origin, destination, rescue launch locations.
NASA World Wind:
Duba, Saudi Arabia, Safaga, Egypt