ATHENS – Hundreds of people were rescued on Friday from a burning ferry near the Greek island of Corfu, a Greek coast guard spokesman said, saying that two passengers were still trapped in the ship’s garage and at least 11 were missing.
The coast guard said the fire broke out in the early hours of Friday morning on board the Euroferry Olympia, which was bound for the Italian port of Brindisi.
Four coast guard vessels, along with Italian financial police vessels, arrived to assist the ferry after its captain made an emergency call.
The ferry left early Friday morning from the port of Igoumenitsa in northwestern Greece with 239 passengers and 51 crew members on board, in addition to 153 commercial vehicles and 32 passenger vehicles.
Rescuers were trying to locate the missing passengers, including two people who were trapped below deck, according to Nikolaos Alexio, a spokesperson for the Coast Guard. No deaths or serious injuries have been confirmed, although at least 10 people have been hospitalized, many with difficulty breathing.
Officials said it was too early to determine the cause of the fire, which lasted nearly 12 hours after it broke out. A video posted by the Greek Coast Guard It showed the flames and thick plumes of smoke that engulfed the ferry, which was surrounded by ships flooded with water cannons. A nearby ship can be heard making a distress call. In another video Posted by Greek state-run radio, ERT.
“We were in our rooms when the fire broke out at about 4:30 in the morning,” a Greek truck driver who gave his name as Vangelis said in a telephone interview with state television from the roof of the burning ferry. rescue boat. He said the passengers were kept out of the fire and given life jackets.
Another man, also an unnamed Greek truck driver, told a local news site that he heard explosions shortly after the fire broke out, which he believes may have been truck tires.
Coast Guard ships and rescue helicopters combed the area for survivors, while divers were called in to help.
Earlier today, TV news showed passengers arriving at the main port of Corfu. A man wearing an oxygen mask was taken to an ambulance on a stretcher. Others, with stunned expressions, carried blankets around themselves.
Gaia Pianigiani Contribute to the preparation of reports.
