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This article was published on December 28, 2014 at 11:13.
The last change is the December 28, 2014 at 16:15.
A ferry of the Italian company “Visemar Navigation”, the Norman Atlantic, started from Igoumenitsa ( in Greece) and to Ancona is on fire off the coast of Albania, in the Strait of Otranto, after a fire that has developed this morning from the garage. The ferry, with 478 people on board (422 passengers and 56 crew) caught fire at 4:30. As reported by the Navy are 146 passengers so far taken to safety by rescuers. Are not currently victims. The ferry is about 33 miles northeast from Otranto and 12 from Vlora. On the ship they traveled 44 Italian: 22 crew members and 22 passengers. Among other nationalities of the passengers also 268 Greeks, 54 Turks, 22 Albanians, 18 Germans ten Swiss, 9 French and some Russians, Austrians, British and Norman olandesi.Il Atlantic replaced the ferry line Ellenic Spirit of the Greek company Anek Lines, in storage.
Immediate relief is triggered: Greece from ‘Italy are parties helicopters and patrol boats of the Navy and the area of the’ accident were hijacked at least half a dozen merchant civilians. The operations to evacuate hundreds of people on board, however, are made very difficult by poor weather conditions: both the means at sea, both the Navy and Air Force helicopters over the sea force eight, with waves of 5 meters, have found a violent storm in the area and visibility is very poor. At the time the fire was not extinguished. Firefighters who are operating at the edge of one of the three parties tugs from the port of Brindisi to intervene in rescue at Norman Atlantic have not yet managed to board the ship. You left the port of Brindisi around 14:30 the ship San Giorgio Navy, employed until last July in the operation Mare Nostrum.
Navy: rescued 146 people
The captain of the ferry sounded the abandon ship soon after the outbreak of the fire. As reported by the spokesman of the Navy Richard Rizzotto, at the time the boat got about 350 people. Are 131 people rescued so far. In particular, 49 castaways are on board the merchant Spirit of Piraeus, 36 on the merchant Aby Jeanett, 36 were recovered from a helicopter of the Navy and transferred to the merchant Cruise Europe, eight were rescued by a helicopter of the Harbour one from a helicopter of the Air Force, while a crew member was recovered by the merchant Genmar Argus. In the rescue of survivors are committed five helicopters of the Navy that ply between the ferry and the merchant.
Bad weather complicated rescue operations
The bad weather is making it extremely difficult rescue of persons on board the ferry: they should deal with high winds and rough seas, but also the fire on board. Are not currently victims. The Norman Atlantic sailed with almost 500 people between passengers and crew as well as more than 200 vehicles. The weather conditions are extremely adverse, with winds reaching force 8 on the Beaufort scale, rain and hail.
The appeal d and passengers : “Help us, do not leave here”
The stranded passengers board the ferry argue, in phone calls to Greek media, that the conditions are “terrible” after the flames have seized two-thirds of the boat (which contradicts with the information that speak of fire under control). “We’re burning and sinking, no one can save us,” said Nikos Papatheodosiou alarmed, on the phone with Greek TV. “Please help us, do not leave here.” The cold winter temperatures would also make the survival at sea very difficult unless the saving is not done quickly. The passengers remained on board are waiting on the upper deck of the ship in order to stay away as much as possible from the flames. “Our shoes had started to melt while we were in the reception area,” he told the Greek television Mega one of the passengers of the Norman Atlantic rescued. The fire in the garage, where there were about 195 cars, according to television, has provoked a strong heat throughout the ship.
Renzi: with Samaras follow each other
“We are following the story of the ferry between Greece and Italy, in contact with Prime Minister Samaras and with the maximum involvement of our Navy », wrote this morning on twitter Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. Renzi and Samaras had two telephone contacts during the day. And Italian government sources speak of “close cooperation” between the two premiers. “The sea conditions are not good, you work hard, we hope that everything goes well,” he told the private television station greek Minister of Defense, Nikos Dendias, following the rescue. The Minister of Merchant Marine, Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, confirmed that “the Greek authorities are in contact with the Italian as the ship is 22 nautical miles from the Italian coast.”
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