Ferry Carrying 150 Sinks Off Bahrain Coast
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) – A ferry carrying up to 150 people sank Thursday night in the Persian Gulf off the coast of Bahrain, and at least 44 bodies had been recovered, the country’s interior minister said. American divers and a U.S. helicopter aided the rescue effort.
Interior Minister Sheik Rashid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa said at least 52 people had been rescued.
The official Bahrain News Agency said the ferry was on an evening cruise that was to last several hours. It overturned less than a mile off the coast, it said.
“There are 52 survivors and there are also 44 dead (bodies) that were retrieved,” Al Khalifa said on Bahrain television. “So far, the (rescue) operations continue. God willing, there will be more survivors rescued.”
There was no indication of what caused the ferry to sink in what appeared to be ideal weather conditions. The government dismissed terrorism as a cause, and the news agency quoted Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Mohammed Ben Dayna as calling the sinking an accident.
“It’s too early to say what caused the accident,” he said.
The passengers on board were thought to be a mix of Bahrainis, other Gulf Arab nationals and Westerners. Ben Dayna said those rescued included foreign tourists and expatriate workers living in Bahrain.
The interior minister said most of the ferry’s passengers were employees of a Bahrain-based company and that they came from several nationalities.
Cmdr. Jeff Breslau, a spokesman for the Bahrain-based Navy 5th fleet, told The Associated Press that the U.S. military was aiding the rescue effort.
“We’re sending divers, small boats and a helicopter right now,” Breslau said.
A pair of helicopters could be seen from the shore flying low over the site of the incident. Rescue teams on small boats could also be seen using flash lights to help them search for survivors in the night.
The sinking came about two months after an Egyptian ferry sank in the Red Sea, killing about 1,000 people. The vessel was en route from the Saudi port of Dubah to the Egyptian port of Safaga when it went down before dawn about 60 miles off the Egyptian coast.
