In New Orleans, the tanker Atlantic Asphalt collided with the passenger vessel American Heritage, which was moored on the Mississippi River. Thirty-two people were taken to hospital; there were no fatalities, according to the city’s mayor, Helen Moreno.
The accident occurred around midday on 13 November. According to Moreno, the tanker lost control and crashed into the cruise ship.
During the evacuation, the American Heritage began to sink and then capsized. Some passengers ended up in the water. They were assisted by port staff, firefighters, rescue workers and bystanders from other vessels.
Moreno described the fact that no one had died as a ‘miracle on the Mississippi’. She said that everyone on board had been accounted for. None of the 32 people hospitalised are reported to have ‘life-threatening injuries’.