Cargo ship slams into Genoa dock, killing 7
Source: Agencies |
May 9, 2013, Thursday
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RESCUE workers in diving gear found seven bodies yesterday in the wreckage after a cargo ship slammed into the dock at Genoa, toppling the busy Italian port's control tower into the harbor.
Four people were hospitalized and two others remained unaccounted for, said Luca Cari, spokesman for the fire rescue teams at the scene.
The crash occurred around 11pm on Tuesday during a shift change in the control tower, as the Jolly Nero cargo ship was leaving port accompanied by tugboats.
By yesterday morning, all that was left of the tower was its mangled exterior staircase, tilted on its side. The tower itself - which was on the edge of a dock jutting out into the harbor - was either in the water or in a heap of rubble and steel on the dock.
Cari confirmed the seven dead, saying rescue crews recovered several of the bodies from an area near the tower's submerged elevator. There were fears those still missing might be trapped inside the elevator, Cari said.
There were no reports of missing ship crew.
"This event is unbelievable because we had the best weather navigation conditions," said Luigi Merlo, president of the Genoa port authority. He declined to speculate on a cause, saying the ship had plenty of room to maneuver in the harbor and shouldn't have ended up so close to the dock.
One theory prosecutors were considering was that a possible mechanical failure aboard the ship left the captain unable to steer it properly, Italian news reports said, citing prosecutor Michele de Lecce.
Mauro described the ship, the Jolly Nero of the Ignazio Messina & C. SpA Italian shipping line, as having a height, so that the full weight of the ship slammed "violently" into the tower itself, not just the dock.
"The ship directly impacted the control tower," he told Sky TG24.
The Genoa-based Messina Line has a fleet of 14 cargo ships, with the Italian-flagged Jolly Nero listed at 239 meters long, according to its website.
Three coast guard officials, a port captain and a tugboat operator were among the dead.
Four people were hospitalized and two others remained unaccounted for, said Luca Cari, spokesman for the fire rescue teams at the scene.
The crash occurred around 11pm on Tuesday during a shift change in the control tower, as the Jolly Nero cargo ship was leaving port accompanied by tugboats.
By yesterday morning, all that was left of the tower was its mangled exterior staircase, tilted on its side. The tower itself - which was on the edge of a dock jutting out into the harbor - was either in the water or in a heap of rubble and steel on the dock.
Cari confirmed the seven dead, saying rescue crews recovered several of the bodies from an area near the tower's submerged elevator. There were fears those still missing might be trapped inside the elevator, Cari said.
There were no reports of missing ship crew.
"This event is unbelievable because we had the best weather navigation conditions," said Luigi Merlo, president of the Genoa port authority. He declined to speculate on a cause, saying the ship had plenty of room to maneuver in the harbor and shouldn't have ended up so close to the dock.
One theory prosecutors were considering was that a possible mechanical failure aboard the ship left the captain unable to steer it properly, Italian news reports said, citing prosecutor Michele de Lecce.
Mauro described the ship, the Jolly Nero of the Ignazio Messina & C. SpA Italian shipping line, as having a height, so that the full weight of the ship slammed "violently" into the tower itself, not just the dock.
"The ship directly impacted the control tower," he told Sky TG24.
The Genoa-based Messina Line has a fleet of 14 cargo ships, with the Italian-flagged Jolly Nero listed at 239 meters long, according to its website.
Three coast guard officials, a port captain and a tugboat operator were among the dead.
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