Georgia authorities are investigating a dock collapse during an island festival that left seven people dead on Saturday.
According to Georgia officials, approximately 40 people were on an aluminum dock gangway, which connects a ferry dock to the shore, on Sapelo Island when it unexpectedly collapsed on Saturday, causing over 20 people to fall into the waters below. Seven people were killed in the collapse, none of whom were Sapelo Island residents and at least three others remain hospitalized in critical condition. A total of eight individuals were rushed to medical facilities, many with severe injuries.
Among the victims was a chaplain for Georgia's Department of Natural Resources.
The incident occurred as crowds gathered for the island's annual Cultural Day, a key event for the Gullah-Geechee community, descendants of enslaved Africans, who have long inhabited the island.
"It is a structural failure. There should be very, very little maintenance to an aluminum gangway like that, but we'll see what the investigation unfolds," Georgia Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Walter Rabon said at a news conference.
Sapelo Island, located about 60 miles south of Savannah, is accessible only by ferry or boat. The gangway was installed in 2021 and the ferry dock where the collapse occurred had recently undergone extensive renovations after a 2020 settlement with local residents.
A federal lawsuit had been filed at that time, demanding the state update the ferry and dock facilities to meet accessibility standards for disabled passengers. Georgia officials agreed to demolish and replace outdated docks while upgrading ferry boats to accommodate disabled passengers and paid $750,000 in a cash settlement.
According to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources spokesperson Tyler Jones, on Sunday investigators, including a team of engineers and specialists, are now on the scene to determine what caused the sudden collapse.
"There was no collision. The thing just collapsed. We don't know why," Jones said, adding that rescue teams, including the U.S. Coast Guard, the McIntosh County Fire Department, and the Department of Natural Resources conducted searches in the water in the aftermath of the collapse.
Newsweek has reached out to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources via email for comment.
According to a statement from the Department of Natural Resources, which operates the dock and ferry boats that transport people between the island and the mainland, helicopters and side-scanning sonar were utilized during their search efforts.
In response, according to the Associated Press, President Joe Biden offered federal support, promising assistance where needed.
Cultural Day, the event that brought so many to the island, is a celebration of Hogg Hummock, one of the last remaining communities of the Gullah-Geechee people. Descended from slaves who once worked the island's plantations, the residents maintain a unique cultural identity rooted in African traditions.
Roger Lotson, the only Black member of the McIntosh County Board of Commissioners, in which his district includes Sapelo Island, described the community as deeply interconnected.
"Everyone is family, and everyone knows each other," Lotson said. "In any tragedy, especially like this, they are all one. They're all united. They all feel the same pain and the same hurt."
However, the community's future is uncertain. Hogg Hummock's population has steadily declined in recent decades as tax increases and zoning changes have forced many families to sell their ancestral lands.
In 1996, while the area was designated a National Historic Place, the preservation of its cultural legacy remains a contentious issue. Residents continue to battle a 2023 zoning decision that allows larger homes to be built, fearing it will drive up property taxes and displace more families.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.
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