Salem Express Wreck

The Salem Express began life as the Fred Scamaroni, a ro-ro ferry built in 1966 in La Seyne, France. As the Salem Express, the passenger and vehicle ferry of the Samatour Shipping Company, of Alexandria, sailed between Jeddah and Suez from 1988 until she sank. The ship carried 650 people: 578 passengers and 72 crew. The sinking was so fast that no lifeboat was launched. The official death toll was 470, and 180 people survived; another count puts the dead at around 464, with 117 bodies recovered. The Armed Forces rescued 178 passengers. Captain Hassan Moro went down with his ship, and his body was found the following day.

Two days later, the Egyptian Navy began recovering the bodies trapped in the hull, helped by dive instructors and divers from Hurghada and Safaga. In the aftermath of the sinking, the short-cut route favoured by the captain became illegal for all big ships. Hyndman Reef, where the wreck lies, is 16 km from the port. The tragedy inspired the Egyptian film "Mako", starring the actress Basma, about eight people who dive the wreck to make a documentary.

Around the ship, personal belongings and debris still recall the tragedy. The visor covering the bows still moves, opening and closing. The hull is encrusted with raspberry corals, and large soft corals adorn the smoke pipe. Life on the hull is sparse: a few groupers in the shade, lionfish, crocodilefish on the sand, sea needles and surgeonfish. Diving runs all year, as the sea allows, and since Hyndman Reef shelters the mooring, the wreck is usually accessible when wind closes the exposed reefs.