An unknown number of people are reported dead and others missing following the collapse of the Sapelo Island ferry pier during Sapelo Island's annual Cultural Day celebrations.

Josiah “Jazz” Watts narrated The current oneMary Landers: “It's a terrible situation. The ramp has been repaired so people can leave the island safely. Nothing like this has ever happened before.”

Reporters out The current one are on the way to the construction site.

The McIntosh County Fire Department, the McIntosh Sheriff's Department, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources – which operates the twice-daily ferry between Sapelo and the mainland – and the U.S. Coast Guard used boats and helicopters for search and rescue operations. Rescue workers are on site.

As of 5:30 p.m., the number of injuries or possible fatalities had not been confirmed.

McIntosh County Commissioner Roger Lotson told The Current he was not on the island today, but his brother, Darien City Councilman Griffin Lotson, was injured but not injured.

“This dock was less than a year old,” Roger Lotson said. He suspected that perhaps it was not the dock but the aluminum ramp that was damaged. He had also heard reports that “something” had hit the dock.

In 2022, Marietta-based Freedman Engineering Group applied for permits from the Georgia DNR and the Corps of Engineers as part of planned improvements to the Sapelo Island Community Dock.

Rachel Taylor posted on X that she narrowly missed the collapse and urged people to pray for the victims.

“We had just left the island on the ferry when the pier collapsed while others were waiting for the next one,” Taylor wrote. “Emergency vehicles everywhere. I'm sick.” She said she learned about the collapse during a stop at the visitor center: “There were so many people there, constantly crowded ferries and shuttles full of people. I am so grateful to be safe with my family and heartbroken.”

Check back for updates on this developing story.

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