At least seven individuals have died after a part of a ferry pier collapsed on the Georgian island of Sapelo, native authorities mentioned.
The Georgia Department of Natural Resources, which operates the pier, mentioned not less than 20 individuals jumped into the water when the boardwalk collapsed.
The incident occurred round 4.30pm native time (8.30pm GMT) at Marsh Landing Dock as crowds gathered for a cultural celebration.
Several individuals have been taken to hospital and search and rescue operations are underway.
US President Joe Biden mentioned he and his spouse Jill mourn the lives misplaced and “pray for the wounded and anybody nonetheless lacking”.
It just isn’t but identified what induced the walkway, which linked an exterior pier the place individuals board the ferry, to a different pier on land to break down, in line with native stories.
Brian Kemp, governor of Georgia, mentioned he and his household had been “heartbroken” by the tragedy and requested for prayers “for individuals who are lacking, for individuals who are nonetheless in peril and for his or her households.”
The governor despatched “state assets to help in search, rescue and restoration,” Georgia Rep. Buddy Carter mentioned in an X put up.
Local authorities mentioned the walkway had been made protected and the accident was underneath investigation.
Biden mentioned his staff “stands prepared to supply any help that could be useful to the group.”
The annual occasion happening on the time of the collapse celebrates the Hogg Hummock Island group, which is residence to some dozen Black residents.
Hogg Hummock was based by newly freed former slaves from coastal Georgia plantations who settled on Sapelo Island following the American Civil War. The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation said on its website.
Saturday’s occasion “ought to have been a joyous celebration of Gullah-Geechee tradition and historical past, however as a substitute it changed into tragedy and devastation,” President Biden mentioned in his assertion.
Small communities descended from enslaved island populations within the South, referred to as Gullah, or Geechee in Georgia, are scattered alongside the coast from North Carolina to Florida.
Sapelo Island will be reached from the mainland by boat.
