Witnesses describe circumstances of man’s drowning after being pushed from ferry

Witnesses have described to Kathimerini the events that took place at the port of Piraeus on Tuesday night, when 36-year-old man Antonis Karyotis, in his effort to board a ferry, the “Blue Horizon,” drowned after he was pushed by crew into the sea.

“I was on the adjacent ferry, about 20 meters away. Three crew members were at the stern when I suddenly saw the 36-year-old man running to board the ferry. At that moment, the crew started to push him away while one of them was shouting ‘get out, get out,’” says Vasilis Mikropoulos. He noted that the ship had unmoored but the stern door was still open.

As he explained, three to four minutes after the man fell into the water, his body appeared on the surface. “About 15 minutes later, the port authority arrived and dredged up his body,” he said.

Nemaid Desiami, a passenger on the “Blue Horizon” who testified to the authorities, told Kathimerini that “the 36-year-old man tried to get on through the car ramp. At first, two people tried to push him back, while one of the members of staff pushed him for a second and third time until he fell into the sea and the poor man drowned.

“After that, the ferry departed, without any announcements, and about an hour later we docked back at the port of Piraeus. The only thing I could hear the staff say was ‘Let’s set off’ and ‘Close the door quickly.’ When I close my eyes, I revisit the same scene,” he described.

Another passenger, who gave only his first name, Spyros, also testified to the police. He claimed that the victim was pushed three times before falling into the water. After that, there was no effort to help him.

“The man got injured and fell into the sea horizontally. For an hour the ferry continued as if nothing was wrong,” he said.