Team of experts locate ferry that sank in the Red Sea

A team of experts has located the ferry that sank this month in the Red Sea, killing about 1,000 people, a Transportation Ministry spokesman said on Friday.

Photo: Team of experts locate ferry that sank in the Red Sea

Team of experts locate ferry that sank in the Red Sea

Mohammed Amin said the team, which includes experts from France and Britain, found the Al-Salaam Boccaccio 98 on Thursday about 56 miles from the Egyptian port of Safaga at a depth of about 800 meters (2,625 feet).

The team will use a robot in an attempt to recover the data recorder, equivalent to the black box on an airplane, that could explain what caused the tragedy, Amin said.

A ship carrying the robot is headed to the scene, Amin told The Associated Press. It was expected to be over the sunken ferry by Saturday night.

The VDR can provide information such as the exact route and wind direction to "reveal the secrets and the circumstances" of the sinking, Amin said.

Al-Salaam Boccaccio 98 was carrying about 1,400 people when it sank earlier this month after a fire broke out on its journey from Saudi Arabia to Safaga, reports the AP.

I.L.