Al-Masry Al-Youm spent a day with the river rescue forces searching for the bodies of Demiana Ateyya, 8, and Rosesine Refaat,13, both of whom were on board a boat that sank last Thursday in the Nile in the area of Maadi.
Rescue forces started searching the water surface for the two missing girls after combing the bottom of the river. They feared the bodies may have floated to the surface and been torn into pieces by passing dredgers or the propellers of Nile ferries. In the summertime, bodies emerge to the surface of the water 20-30 hours after drowning.
The divers split into two teams. The first searched in the Nile north of where the accident took place, and the second south of the location. Rescue efforts began at 5 AM and lasted until 11 PM. Equipped with diving suits, life jackets, life buoys, jet skis and launches, divers jumped into the water whenever they suspected there could be a body underneath a floating raft of hyacinths.
In the southern part of the Nile three divers were working, one using a jet ski. Jet skis enable rescuers to penetrate the hyacinths and small Nile islands without causing harm to the dead bodies. A similar group were also searching for the bodies towards the north.
The two teams began the process 20 hours after the boat accident, which is the minimum time required for dead bodies to float to the surface.
Cattle egrets pecking at the hyacinths can signal the presence of a dead body, either human or animal.
Al-Masry Al-youm met with Mohamed Ameen, head of the river rescue department, who said his department has been searching everyday for the bodies since the incident happened. Ameen said they have so far succeeded to pull seven bodies from the water.
Ameen said the divers use torches while diving at night to avoid hitting any passing boats.
The Nile water current is very strong, according to Ameen, who said the team of 11 divers had to wear 14-kilogram bullet belts in order to be able to keep stable while diving in the water.
According to Ameen, the search was conducted within a perimeter of 1200 meters and to a depth of 5-6 meters below the water surface.
Ameen said the bodies of female victims tend to be dragged faster by the water current. Fishermen and boatmen have been instructed to report any dead bodies to the rescue authorities.
Meanwhile, the boatman implicated in the Maadi boat accident is still under arrest pending further investigations.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
