Nine people have been declared dead and 28 missing as a recreational boat with 170 Colombian and foreign tourists sunk in Guatape, Colombia on Sunday. Officials said that most tourists had either been rescued by other boats or escaped by themselves.

This disaster took place at the El Penol reservoir, 68 kilometres from the city of Medellin. The reservoir is one of the main tourist attractions in the region. A survivor was quoted as saying that the lower decks were too crowded and that there were a lot of children aboard the boat.

Video footage shows the boat sinking quite close to the port and other boats rushing to its rescue. Authorities are still not sure what caused the boat to sink: over-crowding, mechanical issues or shifting currents.