TheCable

One hundred and sixty-four bodies have been found after a boat carrying hundreds of migrants capsized off an Egyptian coastal town this week, a provincial official said on Friday.

Khaled Megahed, spokesman of the Egyptian health ministry, had earlier told reporters that 55 bodies were found, bringing the number of the dead victims to 112 until now.

“The toll is likely to increase as the search operations continue,’’ he said.

The bodies retrieved were those of Egyptians, other Arab nationals and Africans.

Fifty-seven other bodies were recovered in the past two days after the boat sank on Wednesday off the Egyptian coastal town of Rosetta.

Mohamed Sultan, governor of the Delta Beheira province, later told journalists that 18 more bodies had been recovered.

“Eighteen more bodies were retrieved as at this afternoon, bringing the number of victims to 162,” he said.

“A total of 164 people have been rescued since the boat sank on Wednesday off Beheira’s town of Rosetta.”

He did not provide a breakdown of the survivors’ nationalities.

The report said those rescued were 121 Egyptians, including four crew members, and 43 foreign migrants.

“There were many children and women among the victims,” he said.

“Search operations were ongoing on Friday but no further survivors were reported found that day.

“On Thursday, Egyptian authorities jailed the four crew members pending an inquiry into the accident, which is the deadliest of its kind in recent years.”

Reports gave conflicting figures for the exact number of people aboard the boat, while one report gave an estimate of 400, another said the vessel was carrying at least 300 people.

Authorities succeeded in rescuing 163 people, including 123 Egyptians, from the accident.

In recent years, Egypt has seen an increase in migrants trying to travel across the Mediterranean Sea to Europe.

Regional turmoil and high unemployment rates are said to be the main factors behind the risky journeys.