HURGHADA: Four Russian scuba divers who were swept away by strong currents in the shark-infested waters off southern Egypt were found alive Tuesday after they managed to swim miles back to shore, said a tourism official.
The four went missing Monday after a dive in the Red Sea near Marsa Alam, one of Egypt s top diving locations. They were found Tuesday at a tourist village in Al-Quseir, north of Marsa Alam, said Ehab Taher, director of the scuba diving tourism office in the Red Sea port of Hurghada.
One of the divers, Vitaly Ivanov, told The Associated Press that he swam some 20 kilometers (12 miles) to make it back to shore. He spoke to the AP from a hospital in Al-Quseir, where he was recovering from his ordeal.
Ivanov was found Tuesday morning, and the others later in the day, said Taher. The group started swimming back to shore together, but Ivanov became separated from the other three overnight, said Taher.
The Russians were part of a group of six who were diving near a pair of islands in the Red Sea called Al-Akhawein, or the Brothers, according to the official Egyptian news agency MENA. Authorities carried out an unsuccessful search for the four missing divers Monday that was called off at nightfall and resumed the following morning.
The waters around the islands are popular with divers from all over the world because of the chance to spot several kinds of sharks, including hammerheads and oceanic whitetips. But there are often strong currents that can make diving difficult.
At least five Russian divers died in two separate incidents in 2007 in the waters off Marsa Alam, which is located nearly 800 kilometers south of Cairo. -AP
