A collapse on Georgia’s Sapelo Island dock left 7 dead and turned celebration into tragedy. An investigation is now underway

Authorities are working to identify the cause of a partial ferry dock collapse on Georgia’s Sapelo Island that turned a day of celebration into tragedy, leaving at least seven dead and six critically injured as crowds gathered for a cultural festival.

Authorities are working to identify the cause of a partial ferry dock collapse on Georgia’s Sapelo Island that turned a day of celebration into tragedy, leaving at least seven dead and six critically injured as crowds gathered for a cultural festival. In the midst of a celebration of the island’s small Gullah-Geechee community of Black slave descendants, a gangway collapsed on the visitor ferry dock shortly before 4 p.m. Saturday and plunged at least 20 people into the water, Georgia Department of Natural Resources Capt. Chris Hodge said at a Saturday night news conference. It remains unclear why the Marsh Landing Dock collapsed. A team of engineers and construction specialists plan to be at the dock early Sunday to begin investigating why it failed, Natural Resources spokesperson Tyler Jones told the Associated Press. “The gangway has been secured on Sapelo Island and the incident is currently under investigation,” the Georgia DNR, which manages the island and operates the ferry service, said in a news release Saturday night. Ferries typically depart from the Sapelo-side dock three times a day, taking visitors to the mainland dock in Meridian. Among those who died was a chaplain for the DNR, Georgia DNR spokesperson Melissa Cummings confirmed to CNN. Details about other people who died have yet to be released. Two of those injured were flown by air ambulance to hospitals for treatment, Hodge said. The state’s natural resources department said multiple other emergency agencies assisted them by deploying boats equipped with side-scan sonar and helicopters for search and rescue missions. A reunification point was set up at an area church where those searching for family members can gather, the McIntosh County Sheriff’s Office said.