Six die and 31 missing after tourist boat sinks in Colombian reservoir
Cause is unclear, but survivor says vessel was crowded
GUATAPE, COLOMBIA // At least six people were dead and 31 missing after a tourist boat sank in a reservoir in north- western Colombia on Sunday, the president said.
Authorities did not say what caused the four-deck Almirante to sink in the El Penol reservoir in the tourist town of Guatape, where Colombian and foreign tourists take leisure cruises.
The regional government earlier gave a death toll of at least nine. The national risk management unit confirmed six people were killed. It said they were “all Colombians and no minors”.
Regional authorities said the boat was carrying 170 people, most of whom were rescued by other boats or managed to escape.
“It sank extremely quickly. It all happened in a few minutes,” said a fire service captain involved in the rescue.
A helicopter from the air force and two from the army were sent for rescue operations, the military said.
The reservoir is 68 kilometres from the city of Medellin and is one of Antioquia department’s main tourist draws.
Laura Baquero, a survivor, said the boat’s two lower decks were too crowded and the passengers were not wearing lifejackets.
“We started to feel like the boat was going to capsize,” she said, adding there were “lots of children” on board.
President Juan Manuel Santos said he had been told “the boat had a capacity greater than the number of people on board, so that it was not due to overloading”. He said naval experts had come to investigate the cause and divers would continue searching for people all night.
The Antioquia regional government said that 24 people caught in the wreck were being treated in hospital.
Video circulating on social media showed the ship going down and dozens of vessels approached it to try to rescue people.
“What we have seen in the videos is that the boat was very close to the port. We do not know whether it was a mechanical failure, an overloading or something to do with the currents that caused it to sink,” said the fire service captain.
He said rescuers were having difficulty reaching the reservoir by road because of heavy traffic on the major motorway between Medellin and Bogota.
Guatape fills with tourists on long weekends and yesterday was a holiday in Colombia.
Visitors come for one-hour or two-hour cruises on the reservoir and to fish and jet-ski.
The national fire service said it was sending firefighters from six towns to help.
Medellin’s mayor said he was sending a team led by a firefighting crew captain and five scuba divers.
“The area is a bit difficult to reach and various rescue and emergency teams have started joining in,” he said.
Guatape town hall declared three days of mourning.