Authorities said seven people were killed Saturday after part of a ferry pier collapsed on the Georgian island of Sapelo during an event honoring the descendants of black slaves.

“Seven deaths have been confirmed,” a spokesman for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, which operates the dock, reportedly said.

He added that several people were taken to the hospital while rescue crews from the U.S. Coast Guard, McIntosh County Fire Department, Georgia Department of Natural Resources and others searched the water, a spokesman for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources reportedly operates Company the dock.

The gangway at the dock collapsed and people fell into the water, Tyler Jones said.

The tragedy occurred as crowds gathered on the island to celebrate the tiny Gullah-Geechee community of black slave descendants.

A clergyman from a state agency was also among the dead.

Helicopters and boats used side-scanning sonar systems to search for victims, according to a statement from the Department of Natural Resources.

Officials said at least 20 people were on the overturned gangway, which was connected to an outside walkway where people were boarding the ferry.

The tragedy hits residents hard, said Roger Lotson, a member of the local McIntosh County Board of Commissioners.

“Everyone is family and everyone knows everyone,” Lotson said. “In every tragedy, especially this one, they are all one. They are all united. They all feel the same pain and pain.”
Hogg Hummock has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.