Rescue workers in Egypt were still searching for at least five people missing after a boat sank in Lake Mariut near Alexandria on Monday night.
ADVERTISEMENTRescue workers in Egypt are still searching for at least five missing people after a shipwreck near the city of Alexandria.
At least nine people, including three children, are confirmed to have died after a tour boat capsized in Lake Mariut late on Monday.
The boat was carrying at least 20 members of the same family and was returning from a tour to an island in the lake, ambulance officials said.
Authorities have recovered the bodies of the nine known victims, while at least six people survived, five of whom were transferred to hospitals after being rescued.
Relatives of the victims spent Monday night on the lake's shoreline, hoping for news.
Temperatures in the water reportedly fell below already cold temperatures overnight and calls for volunteer divers have circulated on social media.
According to Egypt's Public Prosecution, the owner and captain of the boat fled after the accident but has been arrested and brought in for questioning.
Alexandria's governor, Mohammed el-Sharif, has directed civil protection forces to carry out the rescue and allocated four hospitals for those injured.
Lake Mariut, on the outskirts of Alexandria in northern Egypt, is connected to the River Nile and the Mediterranean by several canals.