In a state of shock, the survivors describe on SKAI’s camera the dramatic moments they lived after the fire broke out. In fact, there are complaints about lack of security measures inside the ship.
It’s only been a few minutes since Euroferry Olympia passengers left the ship. Others call for help and others record with their mobile phones the catastrophe unfolding in front of them.
They describe the dramatic moments shortly after on SKAI’s camera.
“We left Igoumenitsa 2.5 to 3 quarters. At 3.5 o’clock we were called to wake up because the boat was burning. “They put us in the boats, we got off and left,” Epamineondas Piperis told SKAI.
The first testimonies of the people who lived through these nightmarish hours are shocking.
“When we were on the ship you could smell the oil as you climbed the stairs. We went to the room and then I heard the knock on the door and then “fire, fire”. “And they tried to put it out but you know that was not possible”, describes an English passenger to SKAI.
“A gentleman from the crew came and said that something was burning and we all got out and then we went to the rescue means. “And then they evacuated,” notes an Italian passenger.
From the first moment the mobilization of the crew was immediate.
“I saw the sailors who were a little worried and went out and I realized that they were taking care of the devices and the oxygen masks. “I did not like this because at 2 o’clock at night the sailors do not exercise”, the Italian passenger emphasizes.
He adds “the alarm sounded and we went to the gathering place. “We prepared to go on the boats and then the captain told us to leave the ship and fall into the water.”
Among the passengers and small children.
“Our first thought was to take the children and go out. And then we were definitely scared and we went out. “But outside, everyone was calm, no one was shouting and the crew was exemplary,” said an Italian passenger.
“I am just shocked. We are still trembling. One thing indescribable, we will not be able to forget this episode, this tragedy. “It was a shock.”
The testimonies about the conditions that prevailed on the ship are also revealing.
“The worst thing is that in the garages the cars are stuck together. They have no escape route. “They told us to ‘get out of the window,'” they note.
Among the passengers was one who experienced exactly the same nightmare in 2014, at Norman Atlantic, which caught fire at sea on December 28, 2014.
“It was bad weather then. “Today the weather was good and the crew was coordinated”, says the driver who was also in Norman Atlantic, Epamineondas Piperidis.
At that time, in the Strait of Otranto, in the Adriatic Sea, 11 people lost their lives and some were never found.
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