The Gullah Geechee Nation is grieving the tragic loss of seven people after a gangway collapsed during a celebration on Sapelo Island, Georgia. According to NBC News, the victims, most of whom were in their 70s, were attending an event honoring the community’s rich history and culture.

On Saturday, more than 700 people headed about 72 miles south of Savannah to Sapelo Island for a celebration of Gullah Geechee’s history when the gangway leading to the island’s Marsh Ferry Dock collapsed. According to authorities, about 20 people fell into the water after the gangway gave way shortly after the ferry was docked.

The McIntosh County Coroner’s Office identified the victims to WSAV as Jacqueline Crews Carter, 75, of Jacksonville, Florida; Cynthia Gibbs, 74, of Jacksonville; Charles L. Houston, 77, of Darien, Georgia; William Johnson Jr., 73, of Atlanta; Carlotta McIntosh, 93, of Jacksonville; Isaiah Thomas, 79, of Jacksonville; and Queen Welch, 76, of Atlanta.

Heather Houston-Meeks, the daughter of one of the victims, was also on the gangway when it collapsed. She told NBC News that after she made it to shore, some of her father’s co-workers said he tried to help others in need before he passed.

“I’m told that what he was doing when we went in the water was immediately kick it into action and look out for other people and rescue other people,” Houston-Meeks said. “He was until the last second serving others and looking out for others.”

Georgia Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Walter Rabon described the incident as a “catastrophic failure” and noted that an investigation is underway to determine the cause of gangway collapse. He added that multiple agencies, including state and federal authorities, are involved in the investigation.

Rabon also said that the structure was rebuilt in 2021 and underwent inspections regularly but “wouldn’t rule out anything as being a possibility.”

The Gullah Geechee Nation mourned the losses of the victims by posting a message on their X account praying for the families of those lost.

“Praying for the families of the families of those that passed away at Sapelo and the healing of hearts and minds of the survivors,” Gullah Geechee Nation wrote.

https://twitter.com/GullahGeechee/status/1848335260511007015

As previously reported by NewsOne, the Gullah Geechee’s history is deeply intertwined with the legacy of America.

In the early 1700s, when what we know as America began to take shape, some Gullah Geechee were able to escape slavery more than 150 years before the start of the Civil War. These fugitive slaves fled south into the Florida peninsula from coastal South Carolina and Georgia. At the time, Florida, which was owned by the Spanish, was nothing more than a swampy jungle.

The Gullah Geechee are direct descendants of Africans who were enslaved on the rice, indigo and Sea Island cotton plantations of the lower Atlantic coast. The Gullah people were known for their distinctive arts, crafts, foodways, music, and language. The Gullahs speak a unique Creole language and are mostly found in the coastal areas of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida.

SEE ALSO:

Georgia’s Gullah Geechee In Trouble As Zoning Changes Could Mean The ‘Destruction Of The Culture’

The Black Seminoles: How Fugitive Slaves Escaped To Mexico Before The Civil War