One Egyptian ferry passenger has died, and nearly 1230 others rescued, after fires erupted aboard a vessel bound for Nuweiba from Aqaba, Jordan, a security source told Al-Masry Al-Youm.
"The blaze has cost the life of an Egyptian citizen who drowned after jumping from the burning ferry," Jordan's civil defense spokesperson Farid Shareh told AFP.
The vessel was evacuated and the passengers taken to Nuweiba, Transport Minister Ali Zine al-Abidine told private satellite channel OnTV.
The ship, which caught fire early Thursday, was carrying Gulf-based Egyptian workers. It is owned by Arab Bridge Maritime.
Initial investigations have found that, according to information from the Red Sea Ports Authority, the fires started when the ferry was 24km away from the Nuweiba port. The authority received an S.O.S. call from the Pella's crew saying that its garage, which houses five trucks, was on fire.
Another passenger ferry immediately responded to the call and sent rescue boats to retrieve the passengers, a number of whom jumped into the water to escape the fire.
A statement by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces on its Facebook page said that the Navy and Air Force took part in the rescue.
