British survivor of tourist yacht that sank tells how they managed to stay alive

One of the survivors of the yacht sinking off the coast of Egypt has shared how he managed to stay alive.

Those onboard were ‘helpless’ to swim in the dark after the boat capsized, caught in large waves.

The survivor told The Times: ‘What saved me was my life jacket, which kept me on the surface until the rescue teams arrived.’

Two UK citizens were among the survivors of the ‘Sea Story’, after a freak wave smashed into the yacht, causing it to capsize off Egypt’s Red Sea coast.

Colin Sharratt, 65, and Sally Jones, 58, were rescued with 28 others after the boat capsized earlier this week.

The search is on for seven others who remain missing.

So far, 28 people have been rescued with search operations continuing for the remaining divers.

Two of the remaining missing are believed to be from Britain, but have not yet been identified.

Some of the survivors were found inside air pockets, in rooms not filled with water.

The father of crew member Youssef Al-Farmawi told The Times his son and Captain Alaa Hussein managed to send out a distress signal before the tragedy.

‘Then Youssef rushed to help a man and a woman. Youssef was their diving instructor and they were trapped in a cabin but the water flooded the boat,’ he said.

‘However, about 20cm inside the cabin were still not flooded, which helped them breathe and stay alive until the rescue teams arrived.’

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