Cargo barge and ferry collide on Rhine in Basel
Caroline Bishop - [email protected]
Published: 4 Aug, 2014 CET.
Updated: Mon 4 Aug 2014 10:52 CET
A damaged cargo barge capsized and collided with a passenger ferry on the river Rhine in Basel on Monday morning.
According to media reports the incident happened around 8.30am this morning when the barge named “Merlin”, which was laden with gravel, capsized in the Rhine and began to drift.
The passenger ferry “Olympia”, which was crossing the river, was unable to prevent a collision with the upturned 30-metre barge.
The barge then hit a second passenger boat, the "Lafayette", which had 150 passengers on board.
Passengers were evacuated from both ferries, neither of which was badly damaged.
The collision caused a chain reaction involving other boats moored to the quay, according to newspaper Blick.
Emergency services responded quickly and Basel City police confirmed there were no injuries and no missing people.
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According to media reports the incident happened around 8.30am this morning when the barge named “Merlin”, which was laden with gravel, capsized in the Rhine and began to drift.
The passenger ferry “Olympia”, which was crossing the river, was unable to prevent a collision with the upturned 30-metre barge.
The barge then hit a second passenger boat, the "Lafayette", which had 150 passengers on board.
Passengers were evacuated from both ferries, neither of which was badly damaged.
The collision caused a chain reaction involving other boats moored to the quay, according to newspaper Blick.
Emergency services responded quickly and Basel City police confirmed there were no injuries and no missing people.
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