Tourists narrowly escape after malfunctioning ferry ploughs into gondolas in Venice
Several people have escaped serious injury after a ferry rammed into two gondolas in Venice, causing tourists to fall into the water around a famous tourist site.
The ferry, a regular service travelling to the city's airport and operated by Alilaguna, appeared to have suffered a mechanical fault, causing the driver to struggle to maintain control of the boat.
As a result, the boat ran into two gondolas, one of which was parked and one which had several tourists on board.
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The malfunctioning ferry ploughed into two gondolas, forcing nine people to be rescued. Nine
It also scraped along the bridge and eventually came to a stop when it struck a pier and rammed into a building.
Local authorities, some of whom had been tracking the boat from behind when it was clear it was in trouble, rushed to the scene to rescue the passengers and offer aid.
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Authorities raced to treat the passengers, some of whom had minor injuries. Nine
Nine people had to be rescued from the cold waters and were treated for minor injuries and hypothermia, according to reports.
No major injuries were reported.
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The president of the company who ran the vessel insisted the age of the ferry was not a factor. Nine
Alilunga President Fabio Sacco claimed the boat had been taken away to be investigated, but said the vessel's age was not a factor in the crash, and apologised to the gondoliers who lost their boats and others impacted by the accident.
"That launch is one of the last vessels we purchased, it's at most a year old", he told Il Gazzettino.
"We are deeply sorry for what happened… we are heartbroken for the tourists who were in the water and whose vacations were ruined.
"The only comfort we have is the thought that none of them were seriously injured."
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