Three dead, 30 missing in Colombia tourist boat sinking

TIL Desk/World/Bogota/ At least three people died and 30 were missing after a boat carrying some 150 tourists sank in a reservoir in northwestern Colombia, police said today. Officials did not say what caused the four-deck Almirante to go down in the El Penol reservoir in the tourist town of Guatape, where Colombian and foreign tourists take leisure cruises.

“So far we have three people deceased” and “approximately 30 missing,” police commander Jorge Hernando Nieto said. The air force said a helicopter was on its way to help in rescue operations.

The reservoir is 68 kilometers from the city of Medellin and one of Antioquia department’s main tourist draws. Video circulating on social media shows the ship going down and dozens of other vessels approaching it to try to rescue people.

 “The situation looks serious,” said an official with the Antioquia government.  The official said rescued people were being sent to the local hospital in Guatape.