River tour boat strikes bridge pillar in Saint Petersburg

A tour boat accidentally struck a bridge pillar in the Russian city of Saint Petersburg on Sunday, July 12.

An initial investigation revealed the river tour boat Chayka was on a scheduled voyage when her helm operator suddenly lost control, causing the vessel to crash into a pillar of the city's Troitsky Bridge at around 16:00 local time on Saturday.

Local authorities said there were no signs of pollution and no injuries have been reported among the passengers, all of whom were safely evacuated shortly after the mishap.