Six people were killed Thursday when a tourist submarine sank off Egypt’s Red Sea resort city of Hurghada, according to the Russian embassy and Egyptian state-run media.
It is unclear if all those killed were Russian, but the Moscow’s embassy in Egypt said that the submarine was carrying 45 Russian tourists when it went down.
Nine people were injured, and 29 were rescued, the news outlet said. It was not immediately clear why the outlet and the Russian embassy reported different numbers.
Those killed were foreign nationals, Reuters reported, citing the Hurghada governorate office.
The incident occurred at 10:00 a.m. local time Thursday, when the submarine Sindbad “crashed at a distance of 1 km from the shore,” the embassy said.
Minors were among the passengers on the submarine, which belonged to a hotel bearing the same name, but it is unclear if they are among the fatalities.
The vessel was on a regular underwater excursion to inspect the coral reef, the embassy added.
“According to initial data, most of those on board were rescued and taken to their hotels and hospitals in Hurghada,” the embassy said, adding that “the fate of several tourists is being clarified.”
“Diplomats from the Consulate General are on the pier of the Sindbad Hotel,” the embassy said.
CNN has reached out to the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities for comment.
