CAIRO -- Egyptian search teams have retrieved 13 more bodies from this week's boat collision on the Nile River, bringing the death toll from the tragedy to 31, the health ministry said Friday.
Ministry spokesman Hossam Abdel-Ghaffar told The Associated Press that search efforts were still ongoing following the late Wednesday night collision near Cairo, when a passenger boat travelling down the Nile collided with a scow, causing the boat to capsize. The scow's captain and his assistant have been detained and accused of manslaughter.
The online edition of the state-owned Al-Ahram daily reported on Thursday that the families of the missing had blocked a main road in Warraq, the district where the boat sunk, briefly clashing with security forces, which finally broke up the protest.
Nile traffic has been heavy, especially near Cairo, as Egyptians celebrated the Eid al-Fitr holiday following the holy month of Ramadan.
Nile rides are among favourite pastimes during the holidays but many city dwellers also use the passenger boats for travel along the Nile.
