Rescue operation begins for 1,230 ferry passengers

A rescue operation has been launched after a Jordanian ferry bound for an Egyptian port, and carrying mostly Egyptian passengers, caught fire in the Red Sea. A ferry with 1,230 Egyptians on board caught fire on Thursday shortly after setting sail from the Jordanian port of Aqaba, Egyptian maritime sources said. Passengers were forced to escape on lifeboats when the fire broke out as a rescue operation was launched, an official from Egypt's Red Sea ports authority told Reuters news agency. The official said there were no immediate reports of casualties. Egyptian Transport Minister Ali Zain Al-Abdin said about 1,000 passengers have been rescued and around 80 percent of the fire is under control. The blaze erupted on the Pella, owned by Arab Bridge Maritime Company, when it was 15 nautical miles off Aqaba, the official said. The ferry was initially headed for the Egyptian port of Nuweiba. The official said the passengers were mainly Egyptian expatriate workers returning home from neighboring states. Egyptian Transport Minister Ali Zain el-Abdin told state television he was awaiting confirmation that the remaining 400 or so passengers had been safely transferred as passengers were ordered to take to life rafts. A tug and a second ferry were also dispatched from Nuweiba to join the rescue.