Holidaymakers rescued after boat overturns off the coast of Colombia

A packed tourist boat has overturned leaving passengers at the mercy of choppy seas off the coast of Colombia.

The vessel’s stern disappeared under the water as it began to capsize before it rolled to one side and the holidaymakers on board were thrown into the water or had to leap off to save themselves.

The crew of another tourist boat nearby yelled out instructions as the drama unfolded off the coast of Santa Marta.

They included orders to the stricken passengers to make sure they all had their life jackets on and the crew to check under the overturned boat to see if anyone was trapped.

Rescue vessels were soon at the scene to help people out of the water and fortunately there were no reports of any casualties.

The incident happened on Saturday between the secluded beach cove of Playa Inca Inca and the bustling beach resort district of El Rodadero.

Santa Marta Harbour Master Julio Monroy, the local head of the General Maritime Directorate, said: “Between Inca Inca and El Rodadero, a passenger vessel was affected by the maritime conditions at that moment and capsized.

“Immediately all the boats in the area reacted by assisting the people in the water before heading toward the Rodadero area.

“It was later verified that there were no personal injuries, but there were material losses of cell phones and wallets and other valuables.”

Before the accident occurred boat operators had been warned about the adverse weather and sea conditions and some nautical activities had been restricted.

Unconfirmed reports said the boat at the centre of the drama was carrying more passengers than the permitted maximum. An investigation was ongoing on Monday.

In January two British tourists cheated death after the sailing boat they were on was hit by a cargo vessel near Cartagena and sunk.

Colombian naval officers went to the rescue of the holidaymakers and 18 others on board the boat after they managed to save themselves by jumping into emergency life rafts following the early-hours collision as the captain sounded a Mayday alert.

Their rescuers published video footage at the time showing them helping the stricken travellers to safety and taking them to dry land where they were checked over by doctors.

Miraculously all survived unharmed despite the near-tragedy.

The tourists were thought to have been nearing the end of a five-day, four-night tour from Panama to Colombia starting in the San Blas Islands, a stunning Caribbean archipelago off Panama’s coast.

The boat was not officially named, but Italian skipper Rudolf Gamberoni who spoke after the drama to thank rescuers for saving them takes thrill-seekers on regular trips between the two countries on a New Zealand-built classic topsail schooner sailboat called Alessandra.

The voyage is billed online to potential international travellers as a pirate trip and Alessandra is described as a Hollywood star in promotional material because it featured in the iconic 1994 film Legends of the Fall whose cast included Brad Pitt, Anthony Hopkins and Julia Ormond.

Navy chiefs confirmed after the near-tragedy those on board included two British nationals, six Germans, four French people, two Swiss, three Colombians, and three others from Italy, Belgium and Turkey.

In July Abigail Lainton, 16, died in hospital following a horror boat accident in the Dominican Republic.

The teenager from Swindon was critically injured in the 27 July incident when the tourist vessel exploded and caught fire. Her two siblings were also hurt.

An inquest in the UK at the end of last month was told the cause of death was septic shock caused by septicaemia as a result of pulmonary edema.

Abigail, known as Abbie, had sustained first and second degree burns over 60 per cent of her body and died in hospital three days after the explosion.

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