Three dead in Suez Canal blast

Three people died and nine others injured when a diesel tank of a tugboat exploded in Egypt's Suez Canal, the official media reported Monday.

The vessel belongs to the Petroleum Marine Services Co. and has been under maintenance in Tawfiq Port, about 130 km from Cairo, Xinhua quoted the MENA news agency as saying.

The Suez Canal is an artificial waterway connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. An average of 50 vessels cross the canal daily.