Boat owner from Girne evacuated around 50 people from a sinking ferry

Leisure boat owner Fırat Gençer was one of the first to reach the Filo Jet ferry after it capsized off Girne, taking around 50 people ashore, including 15–20 children. He told MYK Haber television about it.

Gençer works in water sports at the Lords Palace Hotel in Girne. According to him, the storm was severe in the morning when the vessel set out to sea, and people on the beach were discussing among themselves whether it was even worth sailing in such weather.

Some time later, he spotted an orange object that had opened up in the sea, followed by a second, third and fourth. Gençer called the coast guard, who told him that no reports of an incident had been received. Approximately five minutes later, they called him back and said that the vessel was sinking.

Gençer’s boat was on shore. He launched it and was among the first to reach the site of the disaster, followed by coast guard boats. He took 35–40 people on board, and when there was no more room, began taking infants and children from the life rafts and bringing them to the pier.

According to Gençer, some of the rafts broke away and drifted empty when the vessel capsized, as people could not reach them in time. He described what was happening as “a struggle for life at sea.” One of those rescued was a child with an injured leg.

The Filo Jet ferry, operated by Filo Denizcilik, ran on the Girne–Mersin route and had 259 passengers and 8 crew members on board. According to Erhan Arıklı, Minister of Transport of the TRNC, 8 people died, 17 are missing, and the vessel is lying at a depth of 514 metres.