Captain Did Not Respond For Fear of Own Passengers

The captain of a ship near the sinking "Al Salam 98" heard calls for help while the Egyptian ferry sank in the Red Sea last week, but he did not respond because he feared his own passenger ship could sink if he turned back in bad weather.

The "Al Salam 98" ferry sank on Friday leaving more than 1,000 people dead or missing. Officials have been investigating reports that the "Saint Catherine," a ferry owned by the same company, failed to respond to calls for assistance.

"I made the decision not to assist to protect 1,800 passengers who were with me on the "Saint Catherine" for fear of capsizing the ferry while turning," Captain Salah Gomaa said on Tuesday.

He said bad weather, including high waves and fast winds, prompted him not to respond to the call for assistance from "Al Salam 98's" second officer, who informed him from a life boat that the ship had sunk.

"It is possible there could have been two disasters and the Saint Catherine would also have been capsized," he said, adding that he sent out a call for help to other ships in the area.

The 35-year-old "Al Salam 98" was carrying 1,414 people, but only 388 people were rescued. Families of the victims criticized the government for not responding more quickly to the sinking ship and blamed the ferry company for operating an old vessel.

The government had said 244 bodies were recovered by Monday evening. Cabinet spokesman Magdy Rady said a further 85 to 87 bodies were found on Tuesday, indicating the total number of corpses found was now at least 329 with almost 700 missing.

Both the "Saint Catherine" and the "Al Salam 98" are owned by the Egyptian company El Salam Maritime Transport Co.

On Monday, relatives of the victims ransacked and torched the Safaga offices of the El Salam Maritime Transport. Police used tear gas to drive away the crowds.