Status: 02/18/2022 11:00 a.m
A fire broke out on a car ferry with around 290 people on board off the Greek island of Corfu. At least two people are still trapped in the garage decks – the majority of the passengers are safe.
At least two people are trapped in garage decks on a car ferry that caught fire north of Corfu overnight. Rescue workers initially communicated with them and tried to free them, the Greek state broadcaster ERT reported, citing the coast guard. In addition, according to the report, ten of the official 290 passengers and crew members were still missing.
At the port of Corfu, where at least 278 rescued passengers and crew have arrived, passenger lists have been checked against people’s names. Several truck drivers among the passengers spoke of colleagues who are said to have spent the night in their driver’s cabs in the garages below deck.
A crew member was injured in the accident, a representative of the Greek Coast Guard said. The man was taken to a hospital in Corfu by helicopter. According to media reports, he suffered from breathing difficulties.
Rescue operation without major obstacles
According to the Coast Guard, the ferry captain had asked the passengers to leave the ship immediately after the fire broke out. At the same time, patrol boats and tugboats from the coast guard and firefighters from Corfu were sent to the scene of the accident.
A frigate and two helicopters from the Greek Navy were also involved in the rescue operation. The Greek Coast Guard also alerted the Coast Guard in Italy. The weather in the region was good in the morning, there was hardly any wind, so the rescue work was not made more difficult, the authorities said.
Fire probably broke out in the hull
The “Euroferry Olympia” was on its way from the port city of Igoumenitsa on the west coast of mainland Greece to Brindisi in Italy. Fire broke out around ten nautical miles from the island of Corfu for reasons that have not yet been clarified. The Greek Coast Guard launched an investigation. It is believed that the fire broke out in the garage in the hull of the ferry. Pictures and videos showed high flames and a huge plume of smoke over the ship.
There is a lively ferry traffic between the west coast of Greece and the Italian Adriatic. In December 2014, a fire broke out on a ferry running between Patras and Ancona off the Adriatic coast. 13 people died in the accident, including nine passengers.
With information from Jörg Seisselberg, ARD Studio Rome