Old Curse Feared: Egyptian Diver Dies on Treasure Hunt

CAIRO — An Egyptian navy diver has died while searching for treasures from Napoleon’s flagship L’Orient, reviving legends among local people of a mermaid’s curse.

Tarek Zakariya Yakut, 28, died Tuesday after diving in Aboukir Bay near Alexandria. Colleagues said that his lungs seem to have failed after he surfaced too quickly.

Yakut, one of 10 Egyptians taking part in the operation along with French divers, was the third man to die since the treasure hunt started in 1984, a spokesman for the team said.

Archeologist Kamal Malakh says the mermaid story compares with the legendary curse of the Pharaohs pursuing Egyptologists who disturb the burial sites of ancient Egyptians. And one local resident added, “A mermaid who made her home in the sunken French fleet is reaping vengeance from snoopers.”