Ferry sinks in Egypt’s Nile River, 10 people dead

A ferry carrying day laborers sank in the Nile just outside the Egyptian capital, killing at least 10 of the 15 people on board, authorities said Monday.

The five who survived were transported to a hospital and later discharged, the Ministry of Manpower said in a statement. The cause of the sinking was not made immediately clear.

The ministry allocated compensation of around $6,466 to each family of the deceased and $646 to each of the five injured.

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The laborers were on their way to work at a local construction firm. It took rescue teams hours to recover the bodies, according to local media which aired live-stream videos on social media platforms showing divers searching for the dead as villagers waited on the Nile banks.

The Nile River is seen from above in Cairo, Egypt, on March 22, 2023. Ten ferry passengers drowned when the boat they were on sank in the Nile on Feb. 26, 2024. (Mohamed El-Shahed/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

The incident took place in the town of Monshat el-Kanater in Giza, which is one of three provinces forming Greater Cairo.

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Many Egyptians make their way using boats on a daily basis, especially in Upper Egypt and the Nile Delta. Sailing along the Nile is also a favorite pastime during holidays in the Arab world’s most populous country.

Ferry, railway and road accidents are common in Egypt mainly because of poor maintenance and the lack of regulations.

In 2022, two people died and eight went missing after a small truck they were riding in slid off a ferry and plunged into the Nile. And in 2015, 35 people died in a collision between a passenger boat and a scow on the Nile.