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Greek Shipwreck Claims At Least 79 Migrants’ Lives, 100 Saved By A Superyacht
Following the capsize of a fishing boat off the Greek coast early on Wednesday, at least 79 migrants perished and numerous others were reported missing.
According to the Greek coastguard, it was reported that about 100 individuals were rescued and transported to the town of Kalamata following the incident that happened in international waters in the Ionian Sea.
An army helicopter and plane, a Frontex drone from the EU’s border protection agency, six additional nearby boats, and navy ships were also involved in the rescue effort. The Mayan Queen IV, a superyacht, was able to accommodate numerous survivors.
The location is near one of the deepest parts of the Mediterranean Sea, and the coastguard claimed that heavy winds made the rescue difficult. A representative of the shipping ministry expressed his concern that the death toll will increase.
A European rescue assistance organization called Alam Phone reported that it thought there were 750 people aboard the 20 to 30-meter-long ship.
Four of the survivors had hypothermia symptoms and were brought to the hospital.
The leader of a Kalamata Red Cross volunteer group, Katerina Tsata, stated: “They suffered a very heavy blow, both physical and mental.”
“The outer deck was full of people, and we presume that the interior [of the vessel] would also have been full,” he said. “It looks as if there was a shift among the people who were crammed on board and it capsized.”
Ioannis Zafiropoulos, deputy mayor of Kalamata, said: “It sank very quickly and was gone by the time the rescue helicopter got there. The area where this happened has very deep water.”
The Italian-bound boat, according to state television ERT, left from the Libyan port of Tobruk, which is located south of the Greek island of Crete. The majority of passengers were 20-something young men.
Greek officials did not right away confirm the nationality of the passengers or the location of the boat’s departure. The boat was originally discovered in international waters late on Tuesday by two neighboring vessels and a plane belonging to EU border agency Frontex, around 80 kilometers southwest of the Greek town of Pylos.
Those on board, according to the report, turned down assistance from Greek officials. A search and rescue effort was launched after the boat overturned and sank a short while later.
People on a boat in trouble contacted Alarm Phone on Tuesday afternoon, according to the company. Although it was unclear if it was the same boat, it was in the same general vicinity as the one that sank.
Frontex and the Greek government were informed by the organization. The group claims that during one connection with Alarm Phone, migrants said the ship was crowded and that the skipper had left the ship in a tiny boat. They requested food and water, which were given to them by a merchant ship.
Smugglers are trying to dodge coastguard patrols by sailing bigger vessels into international waters off the Greek mainland.
Deeply saddened by the news of the shipwreck off the coast of Greece and the numerous reported fatalities, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen tweeted. The number of missing people worries me a lot.
“We must continue to work together, with member states and third countries, to prevent such tragedies.”
