Dutch ferry capsizes after freight-ship collision

A passenger ferry has capsized and several people are believed to be in the water after the vessel was struck by a freight ship in a canal near Amsterdam today.

“At this moment emergency services are trying to pull victims out of the water,” spokesman Frans Zuiderhoek told Dutch state broadcaster NOS.

Mr Zuiderhoek said it was not yet known how many people were on the ferry, which is used to shuttle pedestrians across the Amsterdam-Rijnkanaal, a heavily-used internal waterway.

The boat’s skipper has not yet been found, nor have any other victims, the NOS reported.

Divers were in the water looking for victims and a helicopter was using infrared sensors to search the water for warm spots.

The incident took place near the town of Nieuwer Ter Aa, about six miles south of Amsterdam.

Photos of the ferry published by NOS showed it floating upside down near the side of the canal, its brown-red bottom facing upwards and a life preserver drifting in the water nearby.

The collision occurred at around 7am local time.

Video footage of the boat taken last summer and posted on YouTube show it is big enough to fit around a dozen passengers. It does not carry cars.

Traffic on the canal has been halted.

The boat’s owner, Swetsodv, said on its Twitter feed that the boat, identified as AA, is “out of commission”. The company could not be reached for comment.