Three killed, six missing as ship strikes control tower in Italy

[NBCNews]

   Francesco Pecoraro / APRescuers search what is left of the toppled control tower in the port of Genoa, Italy, after a cargo ship slammed into it on Tuesday.By James Mackenzie, Antonella Cinelli and Steve Scherer, ReutersROME - Three people were killed and six were missing after a container ship crashed into a control tower in the northern Italian port city of Genoa late on Tuesday, the Coast Guard said.

The tower, which was more than 160 feet high and looked much like the ones common at airports, collapsed after being struck by the prow of the ship, the Jolly Nero.

Two of the dead were Coast Guard officials and the third was a pilot for the port, Coast Guard spokesman Filippo Marini said. "We are continuing the search for the missing," he said.

The accident happened as staff were changing shifts, so more people than normal were in the tower.

"It's very difficult to explain how this could have happened because the ship should not have been where it was," the head of the Genoa Port Authority, Luigi Merlo, told local newspaper il Secolo XIX.Massimo Cebrelli / AFP - Getty Images, fileThis 2011 photo shows the control tower at the Italian port of Genoa.Three people were believed to have been trapped in the lift of the control tower and may have fallen into the sea.

Television pictures early on Wednesday showed that the only thing left where the tower had stood was a badly leaning metal-framed stairway. Divers from the fire department were shown in the water searching for bodies.

The cause of the crash was unclear. It occurred at about 11 p.m. local time in calm conditions as the Jolly Nero, owned by local fleet operator Ignazio Messina and Co, was maneuvering out of the port with the assistance of tugboats, under the control of two pilots.

"A thing like this has never happened, we are devastated," said Stefano Messina, one of the directors of the family-owned operator, who spoke in tears near the crash site to a local TV channel after the accident.

The Jolly Nero is a 781-foot-long ship, according to the company's website.

Prosecutors boarded the vessel and have opened an investigation into the accident, according to daily il Secolo XIX.

This story was originally published on Wed May 8, 2013 7:14 AM EDT

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[Folami David]

May their gentle souls rest in perfect peace. This was in no way expected this afternoon. Very bad I must say. Sad one.