Fire Chief details Marina Gangway Collapse

Spectators on the gangway moments before it buckled into the river

A structural collapse of a gangway at the city marina during Friday night’s Fourth of July fireworks display triggered initial panic among spectators, with fears of an active shooter later confirmed to be a false alarm.

In an exclusive interview with the Fernandina Observer, Fire Chief Jeremy Holmes said an undetermined number of people were on the marina gangway when it gave way. While early eyewitness estimates ranged from 50 to 100 people, Holmes emphasized that number remains unconfirmed.

“I don't think it would have been that many, but no one's come out and said, ‘This is how many,’” Holmes said. “I think some people were exaggerating some things.”

A total of 11 people came to the medical tent set up at City Hall for evaluation, according to Holmes. “Just some bumps and bruises,” he said. “The only thing we did, we had one person who put a Band-Aid on, and that was the only care that we gave.”

The collapse caused a wave of confusion and fear, with many in the crowd believing they were under attack. “There were a lot of people there that were running from it, so they thought it was a shooter,” Holmes said. “Someone was yelling that they thought that someone had a gun and there were shots.”

"I was there and it was terrifying people were standing on it and I had just walked across the bridge and then I heard a loud noise and people started running and I was as holding my grandson and I did not know what was going on. It was scary. The bridge collapsed while people were on it," said Carolyn Hopkins on Facebook.

"My family and I was sitting on the deck of Brett’s up from where this happened, it was a very scary incident and when it collapsed people started screaming and running towards us and someone screaming gun shots fired!! People was grabbing their kids and all running away from this area as quickly as we could," added Sandy Morris.

Holmes, who was attending the fireworks with his family, said he saw the commotion firsthand. “We hadn't been there long ... and then in the middle of the fireworks, I see a lot of people start running. I turned to my family and told them I needed to go check on that.”

As Holmes made his way toward the chaos, he confirmed that emergency responders were initially in the dark. “Nothing had been dispatched ... because it all had happened very quickly,” he said. “But then once we got there on the other side of Brett’s, we were able to realize what had happened ... the gangway had collapsed.”

Emergency response crews, including Nassau County responders, quickly converged on the scene, though the confusion made the initial response difficult.

“It was just a lot of unknown ... you don’t know exactly how to respond or with what,” Holmes said. “Once we saw that the gangway had collapsed ... we were able to just relay that message, ‘Hey, this is not an active shooter situation.’”

Despite the panic, Holmes praised the speed and professionalism of the fire and police departments. “Our guys got on location very quickly,” he said, noting the benefit of pre-blocked roads. “People were able to move out of the way when the fire trucks were coming.”

Crowd control, however, posed ongoing challenges. Holmes said that people near Brett’s Waterway Cafe had to be repeatedly told to leave the area.

“We had to order people to evacuate that area,” he said. “I had to repeat myself multiple times ... because they would want to get up on top of where the gangway collapsed ... and just take pictures and videos.”

It wasn’t until the fireworks show ended that the area was fully cleared. “It just took a long time, because it’s a limited amount of people that can get through there,” Holmes explained.

The individuals on the collapsed gangway were able to walk out assisted by firefighters, through water estimated to be knee-deep. “They were [able to], yes, sir. And that’s exactly what they did,” Holmes said. “Everyone was off of the gangway when I got there.”

Among the minor incidents reported, a young girl briefly lost a phone connected to an insulin pump, which Holmes said was recovered “within 15 minutes of being on scene.”

Holmes, who began his position as fire chief on May 5, said the department will hold a debriefing session on Monday to review the incident and identify improvements. “We’re going to go through these types of situations,” he said. “We can gather the information of what did we do well and what are the lessons learned ... I think to answer your question, I’m not exactly sure yet, but if you check back in with me soon, I will have those answers.”

No serious injuries were reported, and the cause of the gangway collapse remains under investigation by city officials.