Two people died after a collision on Friday morning between a ferry and a water taxi in the Wadden Sea in northwestern Holland, authorities said. They are still searching for two missing, presumed dead.
The collision between the ferry and the water taxi occurred around 7:15 a.m. off the island of Terschelling.
The water taxi “suffered considerable damage … the passengers fell overboard,” said Caroline van de Pol, mayor of the municipality of Terschelling.
Help came very quickly but unfortunately it could not save everyone, he lamented at a press conference.
Two missing and several injured
Two people are dead and two are still missing, but hopes of finding them alive are slim.
“After a certain number of hours, the sea search is done on a reduced scale,” explained Caroline van de Pol.
It is a “terrible” time for rescuers who had deployed several boats to the scene, he added, explaining that the decision is made when rescuers realize a rescue is no longer realistic. “With all possible efforts,” emergency services are currently searching the beach for the missing, she continued.
Several people were injured and taken to hospital. The cause of the accident is not yet known and is under investigation. The mayor did not give the identity of the victims, but according to Dutch media, the missing persons are an adult man and a 12-year-old boy.
Twenty-seven people, including the crew, were on board the ferry at the time of the accident, while eight people were on board the water taxi, according to Terschelling.
The Netherlands was rocked by another tragedy earlier this week, when the bodies of a disabled girl and her carer were found in a car submerged in a body of water after days of searching.
Source: BFM TV
