VENICE - The mayor of Venice, Luigi Brugnaro, has said that cruise ships must be re-routed away from the centre of the lagoon city after a 13-deck holiday liner crashed into a dock and a moored boat, injuring five people on Sunday morning.

 Brugnaro, who has repeatedly called for cruise ships to be banned from passing through the Giudecca canal near St Mark’s Square, called on relevant authorities to re-assess the routes taken by such vessels and implement changes with immediate effect.

 Brugnaro and his team first drew up a plan to re-direct cruise ships through the more appropriate Vittorio Emanuele canal over four years ago, but they have received no response from Italy’s government since despite frequent local objections. Residents regularly protest the arrival of such vessels which cause structural damage to the city, pollute the water, and unload thousands of tourists in one fell swoop into the city’s main square.

 “It is no longer conceivable that such ships use the Giudecca canal. We ask for the immediate opening of the Vittorio Emanuele,” Brugnaro tweeted shortly after the incident.

 Videos of this week’s incident went viral almost immediately, footage showing the 65 thousand tonne MSC Opera, which suffered an engine failure, careering into a wharf and severely damaging a tourist vessel already docked there.

 Five tourists were injured as they attempted to disembark from the tourist boat. Four remain in hospital although their injuries are not thought to be serious.

ea