45 missing after safari boat sinks in Egypt's Marsa Alam

CAIRO -- Some 45 people, including 31 tourists and 14 crew members, were missing after their safari boat sank off the northern area of Marsa Alam city at the Red Sea, the Egyptian Red Sea Province said on its official Facebook page on Monday.

"Some survivors have been found and dispatched by airplane to receive medical care. Intensive efforts are underway in search for the missing in coordination with the armed and naval forces," Amro Hanfy, governor of the Red Sea Province, told Xinhua, without giving the exact number of the survivors.

He urged people nearby to avoid the accident spot so that the rescue team could carry out their duties.

According to initial information, the boat sank near a coral reef in north Marsa Alam, Hanfy added.

The control center in the Red Sea province received a distress signal from the boat named "Sea Story" around 5:30 am local time (0330 GMT) on Monday from a crew member, the statement said.

The boat, on a diving trip, left Port Ghalib in Marsa Alam on Nov 24 and was scheduled to return to Hurghada Marina on Nov 29, it added.