Egypt’s Red Sea governorate has confirmed that six Russians died and that 39 foreign tourists were rescued yesterday. This came after a submarine sank off a beach in the tourist promenade area of Hurghada on Thursday (27 March 2025).
The causes of the submarine’s accident — weather conditions on Thursday were reportedly clear with optimum visibility underwater — are as yet unknown.
Investigations into the cause of the incident are underway.
The Red Sea governor, Amr Hanafy, says the 45 passengers on the Sindbad (the submarine) were from Russia, India, Norway and Sweden. Five Egyptian crew members were also onboard. This counteracts the Russian Embassy in Egypt’s claim yesterday, which stated that all onboard were Russian.
Hanafy says the six who died were all Russian, but full details of the victims have not yet been released. It’s also being reported that two married doctors are among those who died, their daughters remain in hospital.
The Association of Tour Operators of Russia cited in a Telegram post, says the submarine hit a reef and subsequently lost pressure while at a depth of 20 metres (65 feet).
Dr James Aldridge from Bristol took a trip on the submarine in February 2025. He told the BBC: “The sub was well-maintained and was as shown in the promotional photos.
“Fresh paint, modern equipment and with attentive and professional English-speaking staff (including two divers to accompany you down).”
He says the passengers listened to a safety briefing, which had been recorded in multiple languages, but said that life jackets were not issued.
“We toured the reef for 40 minutes. For the first 20 I was facing the reef, the sub never strayed ‘too close’ and I never felt unsafe. For the return trip, I was facing the ocean,” he added.
As reported yesterday, the submarine, Sindbad, sank close to the harbour. It had seemingly been in operation for years and offers tourists the opportunity to travel 25 metres (82 feet) deep.
Sindbad‘s operators previously marketed the submarine as one of the only real submarines in North Africa & Middle East, saying that there are only 14 real recreational submarines worldwide, and two are in Hurghada, Egypt. The trip was to explore 500 meters of coral reef and its marine inhabitants.
Read the latest news about submarines for recreational, and other, uses
Main image courtesy of Sindbad Submarines, via TripAdvisor.
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