WashingtoncTypeface:> Seven people are believed to have died after a ferry deck gangway collapsed in the US state of Georgia on Saturday afternoon, local authorities said. The Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) said in a statement that 20 people went into the water when the gangway collapsed on Sapelo Island, some 100 kilometres south of Savannah. “At this time, there is believed to be seven fatalities and an unknown number of injuries,” the DNR said in a statement. A search and rescue mission has been launched. The collapse happened amid a celebration of the island’s tiny Gullah-Geechee community of Black slave descendants. “We are heartbroken to learn about the ferry dock walkway collapse on Georgia’s Sapelo Island,” US President Joe Biden said in a statement released by the White House. “What should have been a joyous celebration of Gullah-Geechee culture and history instead turned into tragedy and devastation.” (dpa)
