Napoleon Bonaparte, a 43,000 gross ton ferry belonging to the French ferry company Societe Nationale Corse Méditerranée (SNCM), sustained damage to its stern in the port of Marseilles during a storm and the ship remains partly submerged at the pier, media reports say.

The ship suffered a 30 metre hole in the stern on the starboard side during a storm on Sunday night, when wind speeds hit 60 miles per hour, the reports say. Napoleon Bonaparte, which is 172 metres long and can accommodate 2,462 passengers, was built in 1996.