Antony Chawagarira
NICOSIA—Seven people have died and 23 others remain missing after a passenger ferry capsized off the coast of Kyrenia in North Cyprus on Sunday.
The vessel, FILOJET, was carrying 259 passengers and eight crew members when it began taking on water about four nautical miles off Kyrenia, shortly after departing for Tasucu in Turkey.
Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman said 237 people had been rescued alive, while seven bodies had been recovered.
He said search and rescue teams were working intensively to locate the missing passengers, and authorities were also investigating whether anyone might still be trapped inside the overturned vessel.
Footage from the scene showed survivors in red life jackets, sitting and standing on top of the overturned catamaran as rescue teams moved in to evacuate them.
A major rescue operation was launched, involving four Turkish Cypriot coastguard vessels, a civilian passenger boat, five Turkish coastguard vessels, and two helicopters.
Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Unal Ustel said that saving lives was the immediate priority.
“All institutions of our state, our security forces, our health teams, and our search and rescue elements are on the ground in full coordination,” he said.
The cause of the incident was not immediately known.
Authorities said the ferry began taking on water shortly after leaving Kyrenia, even though weather conditions were considered suitable for travel at the time.
North Cyprus experienced severe storms on Saturday, with rough seas also blamed for another maritime death in the island’s southeast.
Officials are expected to investigate the circumstances surrounding the ferry’s sudden loss of stability and to determine whether any safety or operational breaches contributed to the disaster.
The ferry is among several daily maritime services linking North Cyprus with Turkey.
Search and rescue operations were continuing as authorities worked to account for all passengers and crew members on board the vessel.
