Rescuers discovered ten bodies of migrants on a wooden boat near the island of Lampedusa. Meanwhile, a second boat capsized off the coast of Calabria, leaving many migrants missing. According to UN authorities and a German aid organization, the boat carrying irregular migrants capsized on the Italian coast, resulting in 11 fatalities and numerous missing persons. Survivors from both boats were transported to Italy by rescuers.
According to the German aid organization, rescuers discovered ten bodies and two unconscious people on a wooden boat carrying refugees in the Mediterranean Sea, while 49 refugees were rescued from another boat between Libya and the Italian island of Lampedusa.
The initial investigation revealed that ten people on the lower deck of the first boat suffocated from gasoline fumes and drowned after losing consciousness. Rescuers had to use an axe to open the boat’s roof to reach an unconscious person. The Italian Coast Guard arrested the survivors and transferred them to Italy. Meanwhile, the aid organization towed the boat with the bodies of the deceased to the island of Lampedusa. According to survivors’ statements, the boat had been launched from the coast of Libya.
The Italian Coast Guard is searching for missing persons after a second boat carrying refugees crashed off the coast of Calabria. Twelve people on board the boat were rescued, while one person died during the operation. According to United Nations estimates, 64 migrants are missing.
The Coast Guard stated that the second boat was launched from Turkey. Reports from the United Nations, citing survivors, indicate that the boat caught fire and capsized. French sailors discovered the sinking boat 200 kilometers from the coast, alerted the Coast Guard, and transferred the survivors to their ship. Upon arrival, the Coast Guard moved the survivors to a Coast Guard vessel and transported them to Roccella Ionica. The migrants were reported to have come from Iran, Syria, and Iraq.
The Italian Maritime Rescue Coordination Center in Rome dispatched two merchant ships that were sailing near the scene, and the European Border and Coast Guard Agency deployed troops there.