Grado (GO), 12 June 2024 – Tragedy almost occurred this morning in Gradein the province of Gorizia, where one motor ship touristic – the ‘Audace’ – has suffered a failure then semi-sink in the afternoon.
The Port Authority ensures that all 85 people on board (including passengers and crew) were taken to safety. There are also among them 5 children. “No injuries were reportedbut just very scary” the Trieste Coast Guard said in a note. However, all castaways were visited by medical personnel rushed to the port of Grado e 6 people were brought in hospital as a precaution: 2 in Monfalcone and 4 in Palmanova.
The transfer to the port of passengers – which ended around 3.30pm – took place first with rafts, and then with vehicles made available by the Coast Guard. Rescuers verified that there were no longer any tourists on board.
“A lot of people are were shocked when the SOS was launched by the crew on board, when they realized that it was taking on water: it was there a young man screaming, it was a delicate moment,” said a Swiss tourist who had just landed in Grado after the emergency. “I wasn’t afraid – he added – but the situation was tense”.
The vessel received rescue 6 nautical miles from the coast (about 9 kilometers) by the Coast Guard – which deployed the forces located between Trieste and Lignano Sabbiadoro – and of Financial police. Helicopters and helicopters were also called to the scene divers of the fire brigade. Also present ‘Sores’ – with the Mobile Operations Center and the director Giulio Trillòwho took on the role of director of medical relief – e 6 ambulances. A half of thehelicopter rescue was landed at the Grado sports field.
According to a tweet from the Fire Brigade, the intervention has begun around 11.50, about thirty minutes after the SOS was launched. The emergency protocol would be activated promptlyas confirmed by the passengers of the motor vessel.
This morning the sea it turned out movedbut the vessel remained floating until the afternoon, while then it is half-sunken. Operations are underway to tow it to the port using tugboats. The causes of the failure are not yet clear, but one is hypothesized fail caused by a large branch. The ship has took on water from the bow. “When all the passengers disembarked, I went to the bow and saw the anchor housing which was filled with water and from the bollards I noticed the water coming up from underneath – he said the commander of the ‘Audace’ – There was probably the bow peak which filled up completely”. The locker is the room in which the anchor is stored.
The motor vessel – a 25 meter vessel, of new construction and in possession of all qualification and safety certifications – was on duty on the Grado-Trieste routeand at the time of the accident he was sailing towards Monfalcone.
For shipwrecked people who have housing difficulties, the municipality of Grado has made available a hotel. Traders, hoteliers, restaurateurs and citizens instead offered basic necessities and food to the tourists of the ‘Audace’ and to the rescuers.
