Rescue workers are assisting tourists and crew members after a diving boat capsized in the Red Sea off Egypt's coast. — AFP

Egypt has released video footage showing the latest tourists rescued from a boat that overturned off the country's Red Sea coast, where at least four people lost their lives. Seven individuals remain unaccounted for more than two days after the 'Sea Story' was hit by a wave and overturned during the night. The vessel had departed on Sunday from Port Ghalib, near Marsa Alam in the southeast, on a multi-day diving excursion with 31 tourists—mostly Europeans, along with Chinese and US nationals—and a 13-member crew. Thirty-three people were rescued, including tourists seen in the video disembarking a speedboat, wrapped in blankets, at a marina near Marsa Alam.

'We were shaking with cold,' one unidentified man said in the footage. The tourists featured in the video had spent at least 24 hours inside a cabin of the overturned vessel before rescuers located them on Tuesday morning, according to a government source involved in the rescue operations. A military-led team on Tuesday rescued two Belgians, one Swiss national, one Finnish tourist, and one Egyptian. Two survivors—one identified by authorities as an Egyptian—were transported on stretchers, with one conscious and speaking. A Belgian tourist was seen sobbing upon being greeted by an Egyptian general.

Red Sea governor Amr Hanafi stated that the boat capsized 'suddenly and quickly within five-seven minutes' after being struck by a strong wave in the middle of the night, leaving some passengers unable to escape their cabins. The 'Sea Story' was scheduled to dock on Friday at the tourist resort of Hurghada, approximately 200 kilometers (124 miles) north of Marsa Alam. Egyptian authorities have confirmed that the vessel was fully licensed and had passed all inspection checks. A preliminary investigation revealed no technical faults. There were at least two similar boat accidents in the Marsa Alam area earlier this year, with no fatalities reported.

The Red Sea coast is a significant tourist destination in Egypt. Numerous dive boats navigate between Red Sea coral reefs and islands off Egypt's eastern coast daily, where safety regulations are stringent but inconsistently enforced.

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