Survivors of sunken Red Sea yacht spent day trapped in underwater cabins, diver reveals

A diver has revealed incredible details of the operation save the survivors in a tourist yacht that sank in the Red Seaas the search for the remaining seven missing people continued for its third day.

Khattab al-Faramawy, licensed professional diver whose nephew was on board THE History of the sea boat, recalled having discovered survivors “stuck in the cabins of the boat” approximately 24 hours after the ship sank.

History of the sea sank early Monday morning after sending a distress signal at 5:30 a.m. On board the boat were 44 peopleincluding 31 passengers – including two British – and 13 crew members.

On Monday, 28 people were rescued in a major operation carried out by the Egyptian naval forces and the Red Sea governorate. Five more people were rescued on Tuesday, while four bodies were found – and currently remain unidentified.

Mr. al-Faramawy recalled diving 12 meters underwater on Tuesday to find survivors still trapped inside the cabins of the ship, which was largely submerged but protruded about half a meter above. above the sea.

He told the BBC it was a “complicated mission” due to the darkness underwater. But he was nevertheless able to save his nephew Youssef, 23, who was a diving instructor on board the boat.

Youssef’s father, Hussam, who broke down in tears when he discovered his son was alive, said Youssef was locked in one of the boat’s cabins while he “tried to save the passengers.”

On Wednesday, search efforts continued, but at the time of publication there were no updates on the seven people still missing.

Footage was released showing one survivor, a Belgian tourist, telling authorities it was “very nice to be back” after being brought to safety by rescuers. He recalled how he “shivered from the cold” after being stranded in the Red Sea and thanked the Egyptian army and emergency services for the hot shower after his rescue.

Uncertainty remains as to the exact cause of the sinking of the History of the sea. On Monday, Red Sea Governor Amr Hanafi said a huge wave hit the boat, causing it to capsize, according to survivors’ accounts.

But oceanographer Simon Boxall cast doubt on the claims, suggesting wind conditions would not have been strong enough to produce a wave that could capsize the yacht.

Speaking to Sky News on Wednesday morning, he said: “We’re getting the same story, mainly from the governor of the region, saying a ‘huge wave’ hit the ship.

“There is no evidence of this. The Egyptian Met Office did issue a storm warning, but this was for the Red Sea and the Mediterranean in general.

Wind conditions in the area around Marsa Alarm “were not that strong” and “were not likely to create these so-called three to four meter waves”, he added.

“I still feel like it probably wasn’t a wave that caused the capsize. We need to see an investigation come out of this. It is still early, but information from the Egyptian authorities is still very rare.”