NICOSIA, Aug 30 – At least seven people have died and 23 remain missing after a passenger ferry carrying hundreds of people overturned off the coast of North Cyprus on Sunday, triggering a major search-and-rescue operation in the eastern Mediterranean.
The privately operated ferry, identified by the Turkish Cypriot Interior Ministry as the FILOJET, was carrying 259 passengers and eight crew members when it began taking on water several nautical miles from the northern coastal city of Kyrenia. The vessel was traveling toward Tasucu, a port in Turkey’s Mersin province, when it capsized.
Turkish Cypriot authorities said 237 people had been rescued alive. Survivors were seen wearing red life jackets and gathering on top of the overturned catamaran as coast guard vessels, civilian boats and helicopters moved toward the scene.
The accident occurred close to Kyrenia, a major tourism center and one of the busiest coastal areas in North Cyprus. Ferry services between North Cyprus and Turkey operate regularly, carrying residents, tourists and other passengers across the Mediterranean.
Major Rescue Operation Underway
Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman said emergency teams had recovered seven bodies while continuing their search for 23 people who remained unaccounted for.
“We have reached 237 people alive. However, we have also recovered seven people who lost their lives. We are deeply saddened by this,” Erhurman told CNN Turk during a live broadcast.
Erhurman said rescue teams were working urgently to locate those still missing. He also warned that reaching people who might remain inside the overturned vessel could prove difficult.
“We have still not been able to reach 23 people. Search and rescue teams are working very intensively to find them,” he said.
He added that authorities were considering the use of additional technology and equipment to determine whether anyone was still trapped inside the ferry.
The Turkish Cypriot Interior Ministry said the vessel began taking on water about four nautical miles off Kyrenia while traveling toward Tasucu. The precise reason why the ferry started flooding remained unclear.
Four Turkish Cypriot coast guard vessels and a civilian passenger boat were sent to the area, according to the ministry. Turkey also dispatched five coast guard vessels and two helicopters to assist in the rescue.
Images from the scene showed the scale of the emergency, with passengers gathered across the exposed surface of the overturned catamaran. Some appeared to be standing while others sat together as rescuers attempted to move people away from the vessel and toward safety.
Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Unal Ustel said authorities had mobilized all available resources following the accident.
“Our sole priority right now is human life,” Ustel told reporters after chairing a crisis management committee. He said state institutions, security forces, medical teams and search-and-rescue personnel were working together at the scene.
The operation was taking place against the backdrop of severe weather that had affected Cyprus a day earlier. Fierce storms battered parts of the island on Saturday, producing rough seas and dangerous conditions along the coastline.
One person died in southern Cyprus after a sailboat crashed onto rocks during the bad weather, highlighting the difficult maritime conditions that had recently affected the region.
Weather Conditions Examined as Possible Factor
Authorities had not established whether Saturday’s storms played a role in Sunday’s ferry disaster. Erhurman acknowledged the recent severe weather but said conditions had been considered suitable for the ferry to make the journey.
The ferry had departed Kyrenia at about 12:30 p.m. local time, according to information released by authorities. It began experiencing problems soon after leaving port, with officials saying the vessel started taking on water before eventually capsizing.
The cause of the flooding remained under investigation. Officials had not publicly identified a mechanical failure, structural problem or other specific explanation for why the vessel began taking in water.
The ferry’s route is a regular maritime connection between North Cyprus and southern Turkey. Such services are particularly important because the island’s northern part maintains close economic and transport links with Turkey.
The incident therefore raised immediate concerns not only about the fate of those still missing but also about the circumstances surrounding the ferry’s operation and the conditions under which it departed.
For rescue teams, the immediate challenge was to locate the missing passengers and determine whether anyone remained inside the overturned vessel. The position of the ferry, its damaged or submerged sections and the movement of the sea could make underwater searches particularly difficult.
Erhurman said rescuers were making every possible effort to find those who had not yet been accounted for.
“There is a great sense of shock here. This is not something we have experienced before,” he said, describing the disaster as a deeply distressing event for the community.
Authorities established a crisis center in the area to coordinate the emergency response. Medical and security personnel were involved alongside coast guard units as rescued passengers were brought toward shore.
The number of survivors reported by officials indicated that most people aboard the ferry had been located, but the fate of the remaining 23 passengers and crew members remained uncertain.
As darkness approached, search-and-rescue personnel faced the difficult task of continuing operations in the waters off Kyrenia. Coast guard vessels and helicopters remained involved, while authorities assessed how best to search the overturned ferry and the surrounding sea.
The disaster is one of the most serious maritime emergencies to strike the waters around North Cyprus in recent years. Its impact was particularly stark because the ferry was carrying a large number of people on what was a routine journey between Kyrenia and Turkey.
Families and relatives of passengers were left waiting for information as authorities continued efforts to establish the whereabouts of everyone aboard.
Officials said the rescue operation would remain focused on finding the missing and providing assistance to those who survived. A full investigation into why the FILOJET began taking on water is expected to follow once the immediate emergency response has been completed.
For now, authorities have emphasized that the search for the missing remains the priority, with Turkish Cypriot and Turkish rescue teams continuing to work together off the coast of Kyrenia.