Nile boat sinks, passengers scramble to bank

CAIRO, Aug 18 (Reuters) A Nile steamboat sank at its moorings at the south Egyptian town of Beni Suef on Friday night but most of the passengers scrambled to safety on the river bank, a senior police officer said.

Of the hundreds of passengers on board, eight were injured in the confusion but police had no confirmed reports that anyone was dead or missing, added the river police officer, who asked not to be named.

The boat, the Princesa, was hosting a wedding party last night with several hundred guests while it was tied to its moorings outside the police club in the town about 80 km (50 miles) south of the capital Cairo, they said.

It sank at about midnight local time (2100 GMT) and police sources said at first they thought that dozens of people could be missing.

One police source said later that frogmen were diving down to inspect the boat and had not reported finding any bodies.

Reuters SZ VP0510