A diving trip of a lifetime turned to tragedy: The story of the fateful Sea Story voyage into the Red Sea
They set off on Sunday morning, looking forward to a five-day diving trip in the Red Sea; a popular worldwide destination filled with beautiful coral reefs and plentiful marine life.
But for the 31 tourists on the luxury Sea Story yacht, the dream excursion turned into a nightmare when the vessel was reportedly struck by high waves on Monday, sinking in less than seven minutes.
In total, 44 people, including staff, were on the 34-metre boat when the distress signal was sent not far from the Egyptian town of Marsa Alam – of those, just 33 people have so far been rescued.
They include Britons Colin Sharratt and Sally Jones, keen sailors, according to The Times.
However, Egyptian authorities searching the sunken ship have also found four dead bodies. Seven people are still reported missing.
For those rescued, their stories of survival are now emerging with some said to have spent 30 hours trapped in air pockets inside the yacht before being dramatically saved.
It’s a sickening end to a diving trip the tourists onboard, who came from many different countries including UK, United States, Germany and Ireland for the trip operated by Dive Pro Liveaboard.
Life on board the four-deck wooden boat was luxurious. The tourists enjoyed a plush lounge, complete with bar and 18 air-conditioned en-suite rooms.
But the trip took a turn for the worse after the boat departed Marsa Alam on Sunday despite weather warnings from the Egyptian Meteorological Authority.
The authority warned of the possibility of large waves and advised boats against any maritime activity on Sunday and Monday.
On Monday morning, at 5.30am, the distress signal was sent. Red Sea governor Amr Hanafi said the sinking began after a huge wave crashed into the vessel, and the ship went down in between five and seven minutes.
Within moments, water was gushing through the structure and passengers were screaming from inside the cabins as the boat was toppled over, the father of a survivor told The Times.
One of the British survivors told investigators they “tried to swim up but the current was too strong and I felt like I was choking”. That tourist survived thanks to their life jacket, which kept them on the surface until rescue teams arrived, the outlet reported.
A major rescue operation ensued, led by Egyptian naval forces, the military and the Red Sea Governorate. On Monday, 28 people were rescued and brought to safety, images showing the moment the shocked group made it to safe ground.
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- Source of information and images “independent”“
