Norman Atlantic: the evacuation of passengers over – Le Point

All passengers of the ferry, which fire off Albania has made at least five people were evacuated, said Monday the Italian Coast Guard. “All the evacuated passengers, nine crew members still aboard to inspect the ship,” said the Coast Guard on their Twitter account. Norman Atlantic was carrying 478 people, 56 crew members and 422 passengers. Italian, Greek and Albanian maritime authorities had launched a race against time to recover hundreds of people trapped Monday on the deck of the ferry, the Norman Atlantic , which was carrying 478 passengers and crew members, Greek majority. The fire broke out on Sunday ferry at dawn in the space reserved for vehicles, for a stormy winds and sea, as the boat en route from Patras, in south-western Greece, and Ancona in eastern Italy.

Burns

The Italian leader Matteo Renzi confirmed Monday midday stock of five deaths during a year-end press conference in Rome. He thanked the rescuers who averted a “massacre” at sea, and assured that relief operations would end in the coming hours. At about 12 pm local time on Monday, the Italian Navy stated that 379 people had been rescued by helicopters and ships sent there.

LOOK rescue the images published by the Italian Navy on TwitterItalianNavy:

Fifty of these survivors, exhausted and chilled to, arrived Monday morning in Bari (South-East), aboard the freighter Spirit of Piraeus , according to the Italian authorities. “The situation is good” to the survivors in Greek majority, said the prefect of Bari, Antonio Nunziante. One of them, however, had bandages on his hands, and a doctor confirmed that some suffered burns to the hands or feet, but still not serious. “They cried and hugged their rescuers,” said he told the assembled journalists when docked the container.

Crew Training Lack

One of the survivors, unidentified, has however been very bitter about the circumstances of the drama, which began early Sunday morning off the coast of Albania. Asked about the Italian chain SKYTG24 this survivor denounced the lack of obvious crew training and inability to put boats into the sea. “One could be launching” a-t- he said.

Fotis Tsantakidis, truck driver, told his side to the Greek newspaper Ethnos he woke up because of intense burning smell. “I ran out. I wanted a life jacket, but I did not find one,” said he said, adding he could board the Spirit of Piraeus despite the strong waves making it very dangerous maneuver. “An Italian fell to the water at that time, but fortunately was wearing a life jacket,” he recounted. A Greek passenger has not been so lucky. Fell off the ferry in unclear circumstances, he stayed more than four hours in the water alongside his wife, who described her ordeal to the Italian news agency Ansa.

“I saw kill my husband. I tried to save him, but I did not finish, “said she said from a hospital in Lecce (South of Italy) where it has been transported after been saved. “This ship should not have to leave with a time too bad,” she also deplored

hypothermia and respiratory problems

The first survivors arrived in the night from Sunday to Monday in Brindisi, in the south-east of Italy, about 40 miles (about 75 kilometers) from the estimated position of the ferry in the Adriatic. The Italian Navy, which coordinates relief, and the Greek maritime authorities assured rotations. Most survivors are free, but suffer from hypothermia and respiratory problems, according to rescuers interviewed by the Italian media. The Italian authorities had mobilized four tugs in order to stabilize initially Norman Atlantic , a ferry 186 meters long.

After the rescue of all the survivors ended Monday afternoon, he will then issue towed to the port of Brindisi, if weather conditions permit, but a tow to Albania more close, is considered if necessary.

The ferry, built in 2009, flying the Italian flag and chartered by the Greek company Anek, had recently been inspected. According to the Italian owner, a problem was detected on one of the fire doors, located on the bridge number 5, the exact spot where the fire would be triggered, said Visenti Group, quoted by ‘Italian news agency Ansa. Prosecutors in Bari opened a criminal investigation to try to clarify the circumstances of this tragedy and find those responsible.