MCINTOSH COUNTY, Ga. — Sunday morning, state officials released more about the collapse of a dock gangway on Sapelo Island that killed seven people.
The collapse happened Saturday afternoon as hundreds traveled to the island for a cultural fair celebration. State officials estimate 20 people went into the water when the gangway collapsed.
Initial numbers revealed that seven were dead, and six were critically injured. During an update Sunday, officials said three people had been released from the hospital, and three remained in critical condition.
Four of the victims killed in the collapse were from Jacksonville, the McIntosh County Coroner's Office told First Coast News Sunday. None of the victims were Sapelo Island residents, according to officials.
VICTIMS IDENTIFIED: 4 of the 7 people killed in Sapelo Island gangway collapse were from Jacksonville, officials say
Officials believe a structural issue caused the collapse, but an investigation is underway to find the exact cause. The gangway's construction was completed in November 2021, and inspections were "routine," according to officials.
“The pain is really severe, no sleep, no sleep," said Fran Timmons Lewis.
She and her brother are still checking on members of their group who had traveled to Sapelo Island to celebrate the Gullah-Geechee cultural fair. The pair had just taken a ferry back to the mainland when they heard about the collapse.
“Those five members I can say now, one is in Savanah with a broken leg or ankle, they’re alive. Some of the members that went into the water they’ve checked out of the hospital," said Griffin Lotson, Timmons Lewis' brother.
JR Grovnar, a resident and local boat captain, was on the island at the time. He had just finished giving boat tours when he heard about the collapse. He got in his boat and started to help.
"Started pulling people out of the water," he said. "I tried CPR on some people; it was too late. One, the baby that went underwater, she was going in and out. So I actually put her on my boat and brought her to the mainland to the ambulance. You know if I wasn’t there to bring her across she might have not made it, but she actually made it and she’s safe.”
Officials said the gangway collapse was a "catastrophic failure" caused by structural issues. At the press conference Sunday, residents of the island say they are heartbroken for the victims and their families.
In such a tight-knit community, people who where there said everyone had been touched by this tragedy.
“We are family, we truly are, and this is just the beginning of another level in which we will be helping each other," Timmons Lewis said.
