About 800 people are still missing from the ferry Al Salam 98, which caught fire on Thursday on a trip from the Saudi port of Duba to Safaga on the Egyptian side of the Red Sea. Rescuers have brought ashore some 400 survivors and 195 dead bodies.

Another seven people were rescued on Saturday evening, the State news agency MENA said. Search operations continued on Sunday but the chances of finding more survivors were diminishing, officials said.

Rani Kamal, third officer on the ship, told the Arabic news channel Al Arabiya from a Saudi hospital the car deck had flooded during the firefighting operation, making the ship list. Government officials said earlier the blaze began in a vehicle.

The captain of the ship, Sayed Omar, is unaccounted for. The second officer, who has been rescued, has spoken to the authorities but not to the media.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak visited some of the injured on Saturday and made a short televised speech of condolences.

Family members accused the government of mishandling the rescue and aftermath, while lawmakers called for investigations and said the ship's owner had been responsible for previous disasters.

CNN/Reuters