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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Italy ferry fire: Scores awaiting rescue | Italy ferry fire: Scores awaiting rescue |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| More than 250 people are still awaiting rescue on the deck of a blazing Italian ferry amid freezing temperatures off the Greek island of Corfu. | |
| Helicopter crews have been winching small groups of people to safety despite gale-force winds. | |
| The Italian navy says 221 of the 478 people on board had been evacuated by early Monday. | |
| One person died after falling into the water. The fire reportedly broke out on a car deck before dawn on Sunday. | |
| The ferry Norman Atlantic was travelling from Patras in Greece to Ancona in Italy. | |
| Passengers described panicking as the heat rose, then freezing as they stood on decks awaiting rescue. | Passengers described panicking as the heat rose, then freezing as they stood on decks awaiting rescue. |
| The wife of one of the cooks told journalists she had had a call from her husband saying: "I cannot breathe, we are all going to burn like rats - God save us." | The wife of one of the cooks told journalists she had had a call from her husband saying: "I cannot breathe, we are all going to burn like rats - God save us." |
| Another passenger told Greek TV station Mega: "We are outside, we are very cold, the ship is full of smoke, the boat is still burning, the floors are boiling, underneath the cabins it must be burning since 5 o'clock, the boats that came (to rescue us) are gone, and we are here. They cannot take us." | Another passenger told Greek TV station Mega: "We are outside, we are very cold, the ship is full of smoke, the boat is still burning, the floors are boiling, underneath the cabins it must be burning since 5 o'clock, the boats that came (to rescue us) are gone, and we are here. They cannot take us." |
| Hypothermia | Hypothermia |
| Helicopters crews fitted with night vision equipment worked through the night to rescue passengers. | |
| Most have been transferred to nearby ships, although some have been taken directly to hospital for treatment for hypothermia. | Most have been transferred to nearby ships, although some have been taken directly to hospital for treatment for hypothermia. |
| The BBC's James Reynolds says that emergency workers in the port of Brindisi had waited late into the night for rescued passengers to arrive but strong winds forces rescue vessels to try to dock elsewhere on the Italian coast. | |
| Nearby merchant vessels aligned themselves in formation to protect the ship from waves and facilitate the rescue. | Nearby merchant vessels aligned themselves in formation to protect the ship from waves and facilitate the rescue. |
| "This is a complicated rescue mission. The visibility is poor and the weather conditions are difficult, but we are confident because there are a good number of ships in the area," Greece Merchant Marine Minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis said. | |
| Mr Varvitsiotis later told reporters the fire had been brought partly under control. | Mr Varvitsiotis later told reporters the fire had been brought partly under control. |
| Most of those on board were Greek. Others came from Italy, Turkey, Albania, Germany and many other countries, officials said. | Most of those on board were Greek. Others came from Italy, Turkey, Albania, Germany and many other countries, officials said. |
| A passenger manifest said that two Britons were on board, but the BBC understands that there may have been as many as six. | A passenger manifest said that two Britons were on board, but the BBC understands that there may have been as many as six. |
| It is not yet clear what caused the fire. | |
| The chief executive of the Visentini group that owns the vessel, Carlo Visentini, said the ferry had passed a recent technical inspection despite a "slight malfunction" in one of the fire doors, Italy's Ansa news agency reports. | The chief executive of the Visentini group that owns the vessel, Carlo Visentini, said the ferry had passed a recent technical inspection despite a "slight malfunction" in one of the fire doors, Italy's Ansa news agency reports. |
| "The tests confirmed that the boat was in full working order," he said, adding that the fire door had been repaired "to the satisfaction of the inspectors". | "The tests confirmed that the boat was in full working order," he said, adding that the fire door had been repaired "to the satisfaction of the inspectors". |
| Ferries are an important mode of transport between Greece's hundreds of islands as well as neighbouring countries. | Ferries are an important mode of transport between Greece's hundreds of islands as well as neighbouring countries. |
| Are you, or is someone you know, affected by this story? Do you know any of the passengers on the ferry? You can email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with any information. Please leave a telephone number if you are willing to be contacted by a BBC journalist. | Are you, or is someone you know, affected by this story? Do you know any of the passengers on the ferry? You can email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with any information. Please leave a telephone number if you are willing to be contacted by a BBC journalist. |
| Have your say | Have your say |
| Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (international). Or you can upload here. | Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (international). Or you can upload here. |
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