Three were among group of diving enthusiasts reportedly on six-day stay onboard boat when fire broke out
Three British tourists have been confirmed dead after a fire onboard a diving boat off Egypt’s Red Sea coast, a day after they were declared missing after a frantic search by the captain and crew.
“It is with great regret that we, as the tour operator, with heavy hearts, must accept that three of our much-valued dive guests who had not participated in the dive briefing, early on the morning of June 11, perished in the tragic incident,” said Pat Adamson, a spokesperson for Scuba Travel, the British company that arranged the trip.
“At the time the fire broke out 12 divers were participating in a briefing onboard, while those missing had apparently decided not to dive that morning. The severity of the fire meant that the 12 divers were immediately evacuated by boat to another craft nearby and the 14 crew members, including the captain and two dive guides, having tried to reach the missing guests, also had to abandon ship and were rescued,” said Adamson.
He added that Tornado Marine Fleet had maintained a strong safety record with Scuba UK. Tornado Marine Fleet, a company based in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh offering trips onboard liveabord vessels, previously confirmed the incident and ongoing investigations, but did not respond when contacted concerning the deaths onboard the Hurricane or to discuss details of the vessel’s safety record.
Abdulrahman Alsarheed, a Kuwaiti tourist who witnessed the blaze, said the fire had spread fast, engulfing the entire boat within minutes. The 12 rescued divers were taken to Marsa Shagra, a village north of Marsa Alam, where they received medical attention and gave statements to police, as local authorities pledged to investigate the cause of the fire.
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