The vessel was carrying 259 passengers and an eight-member crew toward the port of Tasucu in Mersin, Turkey, when it began taking on water and subsequently went down.
Rescue Operations and Casualty Figures
According to statements reported by Philenews and Kibris Postasi, rescue teams have successfully pulled 242 survivors from the water, while 17 individuals remain missing. The captain and seven other crew members have been taken into custody by authorities investigating the incident, as reported by Philenews.
Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman stated that rescued passengers were immediately transported to local hospitals for medical evaluation, and their conditions are not considered life-threatening. The Turkish Interior Ministry deployed substantial assets to the area, including four floating units, a passenger ferry named AKGÜNLER 3, two Coast Guard helicopters, and six vessels from the Turkish Naval Forces to support ongoing search and recovery missions.
Official Reactions and International Response
Government Spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis expressed deep sorrow on behalf of the Republic of Cyprus via a statement on the social media platform X. Letymbiotis noted that the Republic of Cyprus offered its readiness from the outset to deploy all necessary air and naval resources to assist in search and rescue operations, emphasizing that protecting human life remains the primary priority.
The Cyprus Joint Rescue Coordination Center (JRC) communicated its readiness to intervene through the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) and the relevant bicommunal committee. However, according to the JRC, the Turkish Cypriot side stated that it did not require the center’s assistance at this time.
AKP Spokesman Ömer Çelik also addressed the tragedy online, stating that all available resources had been mobilized to rescue the ferry passengers safely.
Survivor Testimonies and Investigation
Survivors rescued from the catamaran have raised serious questions regarding the crew’s response as the vessel began taking on water. In interviews published by the newspaper Kibris, an unnamed survivor alleged that crew members dismissed early warnings from passengers who reported hearing loud impacts and noticing water entering the hull.
“The ship started hitting hard, ‘pat-pat’… We called the authorities and told them: ‘Look, the ship is taking on water’,” the survivor told Kibris. According to the account, crew members initially responded that passengers were simply unaccustomed to sea travel and that there was no danger.
The survivor further claimed that as the bow of the vessel fractured and water flooded the seating areas, crew members abandoned the passenger cabin ahead of the public. Authorities have detained the captain and seven crew members as the official investigation into the cause of the sinking and the evacuation procedures continues.
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