31.08.2026 17:01
Fırat Gencer, a water sports instructor who was the first to respond to the scene of the ferry disaster off the coast of Girne in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), where 8 people lost their lives and 18 went missing, described the moments he rescued approximately 100 victims from the brink of death.
Eight people died and 18 went missing after a passenger ferry sank off the coast of Girne. Fırat Gencer, who rushed to provide first aid, recounted those moments.
"IF IT HAD GONE 10 MORE MINUTES, THE DEATH TOLL WOULD HAVE BEEN MUCH HIGHER"
Gencer, who works as a water sports instructor at a hotel in the region, drew attention to the adverse weather conditions at sea when the ferry departed the port. Noticing that the ship came to a sudden stop about 15 minutes after its departure and that orange life raft systems were deployed, Gencer immediately notified the Coast Guard teams.
When the teams shortly confirmed back to him that an emergency distress call had come from the ship, Gencer set out to sea immediately with his boat despite the harsh weather conditions, describing the scale of the incident in these words:
"The weather was bad; we reached them within 20-25 minutes with our boat. If we hadn't seen it, or if this boat had gone 10 more minutes and the accident happened, there would have been many more casualties."
DIESEL LEAK COMPLICATED THE RESCUE
Describing the scene he encountered upon arriving at the site, Gencer stated that they had great difficulty pulling people out of the water due to the heavy diesel fuel leaking from the sinking ferry into the sea. Gencer, who brought the casualties on board his boat with quick maneuvers, summarized the process as follows:
"We helped everyone. Meanwhile, we handed over the casualties to the teams waiting on the shore. We brought about 100 passengers in two trips. There are also missing people; I wish we could have done more."