Sixteen people, including 12 foreign nationals, are missing after a tourist boat sank off Egypt’s Red Sea coast on Monday, local authorities confirmed. The incident occurred near the coastal town of Marsa Alam, with the boat, Sea Story, carrying 44 people—31 tourists and 13 crew members—on a diving expedition.
According to the Red Sea Governorate, 28 survivors were rescued, sustaining only minor injuries such as bruises and scratches. None of the survivors required hospitalization. Governor Amr Hanafi stated that initial reports suggest a sudden and powerful wave struck the boat, causing it to capsize in a matter of minutes. Some passengers, who were in their cabins at the time, were unable to escape the rapidly sinking vessel.
The foreign nationals aboard the boat hailed from a range of countries, including the United States, Belgium, the United Kingdom, China, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Poland, Slovakia, Spain, and Switzerland.
The boat had departed from Port Ghalib in Marsa Alam on Sunday, with plans to return to Hurghada Marina by November 29. A distress call was received early on Monday morning, around 5:30 am local time (03:30 GMT), triggering an immediate search and rescue operation coordinated with the Egyptian navy and army.
The Egyptian Meteorological Authority had issued warnings ahead of the trip, forecasting turbulent seas with wave heights of up to 6 meters (20 feet) in the Mediterranean and 4 meters (13 feet) in the Red Sea. This has raised concerns about how the vessel was allowed to set sail under such conditions.
The Red Sea, famous for its vibrant coral reefs and diverse marine life, is a key destination for international tourists and an essential part of Egypt’s tourism industry.
This latest tragedy follows a 2023 incident near Marsa Alam, where a fire on a motorboat left three British tourists missing and 12 rescued. In 2016, another maritime disaster occurred in the Mediterranean, where a boat carrying migrants sank, claiming at least 170 lives.
