The fires on the ferry that crashed off Corfu have been contained. Ten people are still missing.
Athens – The sources of fire on the “Euroferry Olympia” ferry off Corfu have decreased significantly by Monday morning. Little smoke came out of the ship.
“But the temperatures on the car decks are still extremely high and the air is toxic,” said the chief of operations of the Greek fire brigade, Dimitris Kontogiannis, on Greek State Broadcasting (ERT). There is still no trace of ten passengers. The body of a truck driver had been recovered the day before.
The authorities now wanted to advise where the ship could be taken. Above all, the fuel would have to be pumped out soon, the operations manager said. A possible solution is the nearby port of Igoumenitsa on the mainland. There is a very large ferry port there where the ship could safely dock far away from other ferries, experts explained on Greek TV.
The ferry was about two nautical miles off the north coast of the Greek island of Corfu on Monday. Local authorities have already protested, demanding the ferry be removed due to the risk of pollution. A fire broke out on the Italian “Euroferry Olympia” on Friday night for previously unknown reasons. 281 people have been rescued so far. dpa
