BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) – A rescue operation is underway in Colombia after a tourist boat with about 150 people on board sank in a reservoir near Medellin. At least three people have been confirmed dead.
The air force said on Twitter that it was sending a helicopter to the Guatape reservoir while Medellin’s mayor said firefighters and scuba divers were heading to the town.
Dramatic videos circulating on social media show a multi-story ferry rocking back and forth as people crawled down from a third-floor roof as the ship began sinking. A flotilla of recreational boats rushed to the scene to pull people from the vessel.
Eduardo Rivera, director of a hospital in Guatape, told Teleantioquia that three people killed in the accident had arrived at the medical facility. Authorities didn’t say how many people had been rescued or were missing.
Survivors told local media that the boat, called El Almirante, appeared to be overloaded and none of the passengers on board were wearing life vests.
The reservoir surrounding the soaring rocky outcrop of El Penol is a popular weekend destination a little more than an hour from Medellin. It was especially busy Sunday as Colombians celebrated a long holiday weekend.