Greek ferry burns for more than 30 hours, police confirm 12 missing
CCTV news client news on the 19th local time, the Greek coast guard confirmed that 12 people were missing from Bulgaria, Greece, Turkey and Lithuania following a fire on the “European ferry Olympia” near the island of Corfu. Greek state television said a prosecutor had opened an investigation into the incident.
As of now, the fire has been burning for more than 30 hours, and the fire team is still putting more efforts to control the fire.
Information on the number of people on board was updated as the rescue operation unfolded. As of now, the number of people on board has been updated to 292, including 241 passengers and 51 crew members. Rescue boats have transferred most of the 280 rescued to the nearby island of Corfu. Bulgaria’s foreign ministry said 127 Bulgarian citizens were on board.
Late on February 18 local time, Greece rescued two people not on the official missing persons list, a Bulgarian and an Afghan. They have been taken to hospital in Corfu.
The 183-meter-long ferry departed from Igoumenitsa, a port in western Greece, to Brindisi, Italy, on a nine-hour journey, but unfortunately caught fire on the way. (Headquarters reporter Wang Yuguo)