Tourist Ferry Capsizes in Colombia, Killing at Least 9<br />The authorities could not say exactly how many people were on the boat<br />and asked passengers or relatives to report to a makeshift rescue center along the shore of the reservoir, which surrounds the soaring rocky outcrop of El Penol, a popular weekend destination a little more than an hour from Medellin.<br />By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSJUNE 25, 2017<br />GUATAPE, Colombia — Nine people died and 28 were missing after a tourist ferry packed with<br />about 170 passengers capsized Sunday on a reservoir near Medellin, officials said.<br />A major rescue effort involving Colombia’s Air Force<br />and firefighters from nearby cities searched for survivors at a reservoir in Guatape where the four-story boat, El Almirante, sank.<br />Margarita Moncada, the head of the disaster response agency in Antioquia state, said<br />that according to a preliminary report 99 people had been rescued and 40 others had made it to shore safely and in good condition.<br />As it went down, recreational boats and Jet Skis rushed to the scene to pull people from the ferry<br />and deliver them safely to the shore, avoiding an even deadlier tragedy.<br />"Those on the first and second floors sank immediately," a female survivor who was<br />not identified told Teleantioquia, a public television network in Colombia.
