Bogota - Nine people died and 28 are
missing after a multi-decked tourist boat carrying about 170
passengers sank in Colombia's Penol-Guatape reservoir on Sunday
during the long holiday weekend, a government official said.
Officials did not disclose the cause of the accident and
provided few details.
Videos posted on social media showed motorboats coming to
the aid of passengers on the upper decks as the boat rocked from
side to side. Ninety-nine people were rescued, Margarita
Moncada, the head of disaster relief for Antioquia province,
told journalists.
"At the moment we have nine people found dead. Another 99
people were rescued immediately and 40 more got out on their
own," she said.
Image provided by Administrative Department of Disaster Prevention (DAPARD) shows ambulance and rescue vehicles arriving to a dock where tour boats berth, in Guatape, Antioquia Department, Colombia. Picture: Xinhua/DAPARD
Survivors on local television reports said they heard a loud
noise before the boat began to sink and that not all of them had
life jackets. Rescue operations were ongoing.
Rescue workers and the air force were helping passengers at
the scene, President Juan Manuel Santos said in a Twitter post.
Image provided by Antioquia Police shows rescuers and police officers boarding a boat towards the site where a tour boat capsized in Guatape, Antioquia Department, Colombia. Picture: Xinhua/Antioquia's Police
The large reservoir, about an hour from the central city of
Medellin, is a popular tourist destination.