By Ted Jeory and Sharon AsplinA TEENAGER from Essex who was awoken by three huge suicide bomb blasts in Egypt said last night he felt lucky to be alive.

By Ted Jeory and Sharon Asplin

A TEENAGER from Essex who was awoken by three huge suicide bomb blasts in Egypt said last night he felt lucky to be alive.

But Sam Horton, 19, who is on holiday with his friend Bella Shah in the Red Sea resort of Sharm El Sheikh, added his thoughts were with the families of the people killed in the weekend's atrocities.

Mr Horton, of Wick Road, Colchester, a former pupil of the town's Gilberd School, said he had been asleep when he heard the first bang at 1am on Saturday.

“I thought someone was throwing something at the window and then it happened again. I thought someone's messing about chucking bottles at the hotel,” he said.

“I said 'That's not on' and decided to stay up. I thought 'I'm on holiday and I'm not going to have somebody messing like that'.

“Then on the third occasion the whole window was shaking in front of my face. I didn't know what it was. The last thing I thought it would be was a bomb - if I was in London, yes, but not in Egypt. I only found out in the morning when the rep told us.”

Mr Horton said he and Miss Shah, 18, of Parsons Heath, Colchester, had been near one of the blast sites only two hours earlier.

“We'd met some other people and we were going to go out with them, but the other girl was ill with a stomach upset and so we decided to stay in,” he said.

“I do feel lucky to be alive, but there are so many people who've been killed and I'm really sorry for them and their families.”

His mother, Jenny Horton, said she and her husband, Nigel, had been returning from a holiday in Devon on Saturday morning when they learned of the bombings.

“I just thought 'Sam's in Egypt', but it wasn't until we were able to stop the car and check the paperwork we confirmed he was in Sharm El Sheikh,” she said.

“I tried to ring Sam, nothing, I tried to ring Bella's dad, nothing. For about two hours, which seemed like two years, I managed to get through to Bella.

“It was such a shock, but the main thing is they are both safe and well and I can't wait to see them again.”

But Mrs Horton said she would not relax until her son returned home on Monday.

“He told me the day after he went out snorkelling and was followed by two sharks - sometimes there is just too much information,” she added.

The bombings death toll stands at 88, according to the head of the Sharm El Sheikh hospital that treated the victims, but Egypt's Health Ministry has put it at 64.

A Briton has been confirmed killed in the blasts with 10 others still missing. The families of two missing Britons, Jeremy Lakin, 34, and Annalie Vickers, 31, issued a statement saying they believe the two were dead.

Investigators said they had identified a body they suspected of being a suicide bomber. He is believed to be an Egyptian with Islamic militant ties.