The U.S. Coast Guard mounted an emergency response on the Mississippi River after an allision involving a cruise ship and a cargo ship in New Orleans initially left numerous people missing. A total of 195 people were later accounted for.

The rescue operation unfolded near the busy ship channel separating the French Quarter and Algiers. The response brought Coast Guard personnel together with state, local, port and maritime emergency teams.

Coast Guard units dispatched to the scene included Maritime Safety and Security Team New Orleans, Aids to Navigation New Orleans and Air Station New Orleans. Those units joined the search and rescue effort as authorities worked to determine the situation aboard the vessels.

The Coast Guard coordinated its response with Louisiana State Police, the New Orleans Fire Department and Port NOLA Harbor Police. Maritime salvage personnel and other emergency responders also participated, according to a Coast Guard official.

“The United States Coast Guard, in coordination with local response partners, is responding to a vessel collision involving a tanker and a cruise ship near Mile Marker 96 on the Mississippi River,” Coast Guard Chief of Public Affairs Capt. Timothy Balunis said Friday.

Balunis said officials closed the Mississippi River to vessel traffic while emergency operations continued. The closure allowed responding authorities to evaluate the scene and carry out their work near Mile Marker 96.

Officials were working to “assess the situation and conduct response operations,” Balunis said. The Coast Guard did not provide further details about the closure or indicate when vessel traffic would be allowed to resume.

“This is a developing situation,” Balunis said. He also said additional information would be released when it became available as the Coast Guard and its response partners continued their work.

WDSU in New Orleans reported that the cruise vessel was the American Heritage, an American Cruise Lines riverboat. The vessel carried nearly 130 passengers and had been docked in port before the collision.

According to WDSU, the tanker Atlantic Asphalt struck the American Heritage in a T bone collision at roughly 12:30 p.m. Photos posted on social media showed the cruise ship completely on its side four hours later.

The source did not provide additional details about the passengers or others aboard the two ships. The initial emergency response focused on locating people and accounting for those connected to the incident.

The Coast Guard’s involvement extended beyond the immediate search and rescue operation. A Coast Guard official said the service would launch a Marine Board of Investigation to examine the incident.

That investigation will seek to determine the cause of the accident. It will also examine whether criminal activity is suspected in connection with the collision, according to the Coast Guard official.

The Marine Board of Investigation can make recommendations regarding criminal charges. No determination about the cause or possible criminal activity was provided while the emergency response remained underway.

The collision brought together Coast Guard aviation, maritime security and navigation personnel alongside police, firefighters, port officers and salvage crews. Their response continued while the river remained closed to vessel traffic and officials assessed the damaged ships.

The accounting of 195 people marked a major development after numerous people were initially reported missing. Balunis cautioned that the situation was still developing and said authorities would provide more information when it became available.