Rescue effort stretches into night after ferry blaze

Passengers from the Italian-flagged Euroferry Olympia, which caught fire off the island of Corfu yesterday, are seen on board an Italian Guardia di Finanza vessel after being rescued. The rescue effort continued into the night as several passengers were still missing at the time of print. The ship had 239 passengers and 51 crew members on board when it caught fire en route to the Italian port of Brindisi. Kathimerini has learned that Greece’s Union of Professional Truck Drivers had sent a letter to the Shipping Ministry and the port authorities of Patra and Igoumenitsa in 2017 warning of the perilous conditions on board the boat in question. Their warnings came in the wake of the 2014 Norman Atlantic blaze, which started on the Italy-bound ferry’s car deck, and claimed at least 16 lives. [Guardia di Finanza Press Office/Reuters]