At least seven people were killed Saturday when part of an aluminum ferry pier collapsed during an event honoring descendants of black slaves on Sapelo Island, Georgia, authorities said.
The tragic collapse sent multiple people into the water around 4:30 p.m., killing seven people, including a chaplain from the state agency that operates the pier, according to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.
“Many of the people on the slope were elderly, and many of those injured and killed were elderly,” said McIntosh County Commissioner Roger Lotson, adding that members of the McIntosh County Shouters were among those swept away. It added that it was included in
“This is a huge tragedy for the prefecture.”
Bill and Mary Humphrey boarded the ferry seconds before the pier collapsed and said they saw four bodies floating face down in the current pulling them out to sea, the paper said.
“It was like slow motion. It was just going down. Everybody was falling into the water,” Bill Humphrey said, adding that his wife “was the worst.”
“I can’t get that image out of my head.”
One witness who rescued people from the water after the collapse told the outlet, “There wasn’t a soul that didn’t want to help someone,” while another witness said people pulled victims out of the water and performed CPR. when the ferry crew threw life preservers to people in danger.
Follow the Post’s live coverage of the Georgia ferry pier collapse
At least 20 people were standing on the pier where a gangway collapsed, sending ferry passengers into the water, including eight who were hospitalized, Georgia Department of Natural Resources spokesman Tyler Jones said. , six of whom were seriously injured.
The DNR manages the docks and ferry boats that transport passengers between the island and the mainland.
Officials said rescue teams from the U.S. Coast Guard, McIntosh County Fire Department and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources continued to search the water, and helicopters and boats equipped with side-scan sonar were also used in the search.
It’s unclear what caused the dock to collapse, but Jones said there was no collision with a boat or other object.
“It just collapsed. We don’t know why,” he told AP News, adding that a team of engineers and construction experts will be on the scene early Sunday morning to investigate what caused the sidewalk to collapse. Ta.
Three survivors in their 20s who were on the ferry said they heard the ramp collapse behind them and saw everyone standing on the dock, including an elderly woman using a walker, fall into the water. Ta.
The group was traveling from Florida to attend a heritage day when they witnessed the bodies of four people floating face down in the water being pulled out to sea by low tide.
The fatal accident occurred as crowds gathered on the island to celebrate the small Gullah-Geechee community, made up of descendants of black slaves, for Culture Day, according to ABC News.
The annual event spotlights Hog Hammock, a small island community home to a few dozen black residents, founded by dirt roads and former slaves from Thomas Spalding’s cotton plantation. It is made up of modest homes, the newspaper reported.
“It’s a terrible situation,” said Carolyn Rader, who was on the island for the festival, according to the Current newspaper.
“Nothing like this has ever happened before.”
Lotson told Georgia Public Radio that the dock was installed less than a year ago and speculated that the aluminum ramp, not the dock, was damaged.
“Even if the ferry were to hit the dock, you would think the construction requirements would be such that it could be maintained,” Lotson said.
Rachel Taylor posted on X that she had just left the island on the ferry when the pier collapsed.
“After we got back to the car, we stopped at the visitor center and were told what happened,” she posted.
“At that time, I was told that three people had passed away. There were so many people there and the ferries and shuttle buses were always full. I was so grateful to be safe with my family and my heart was broken. I feel like I’m going to burst.”
Mr Taylor added that the currents were “very strong” and the only access to the island was by ferry, delaying the initial response.
College students Lyla LeRoy and Joyta Davis, an 85-year-old musician who went into diabetic shock, as people desperately tried to save drowning elderly and children after Georgia’s ferry pier collapse. He recalled administering insulin.
“When they heard it, people were still in the water, or they (said) that people were drowning. Then more people started going down there and some were already on shore. I was being pulled up,” Leroy, a double major in African studies and environmental science, told The Current.
“One of the girls came and we picked her up and we carried her to the van to try to turn on the heat in the van. And she was young. I know she was young.”
The students said they helped with the rescue effort and provided insulin to Gullah Geechee performer Jack Evans, 85.
“We gave him insulin. … (H)e started having pain inside his ribcage and above, but he was still able to breathe. He was mainly just in shock. ” said Leroy.
The McIntosh County Sheriff’s Office announced on Facebook that it has set up a family reunification area at Elm Grove Baptist Church for people searching for loved ones.
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden released a statement on X saying they were “heartbroken” by the lives lost.
“What was supposed to be a joyful celebration of Gullah-Geechee culture and history turned into tragedy and devastation. Jill and I mourn those who lost their lives, and those injured and missing. I pray for his soul,” the president said.
Georgia Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock echoed the president’s sentiments in a post about X, expressing deep sadness and sympathy.
“A tragic end to a joyous celebration. Praying for those we sadly lost and the loved ones of those still missing,” he wrote.
“Tonight, the hearts of all Georgians are with the Gullah-Geechee community and the people of Sapelo Island.”
This is a developing story. Please check the latest information.
