European photopress agency based in4/6/2023 ![]() ![]() READ MORE: Pope decries modern-day treatment of migrants as he declares 2 new saints He added he also was praying for the rescuers “and for those who give welcome” to the migrants. Peter’s Square that he was praying for the dead, the missing and the survivors. State TV said 22 survivors were taken to a hospital. Many of the survivors, wrapped in blankets and quilts, were taken by bus to a temporary shelter. A local priest said he blessed many of them while they were still lying on the beach. The bodies were brought to the sports stadium in the nearest city, Crotone. Local fishermen also joined in the search. The rescue operation involved a helicopter and police aircraft, as well as vessels from state firefighter squads, the Coast Guard and border police. statement, with most of the passengers from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Somalia.Įarlier, in an indication of the difficulty in establishing how many passengers had set out on the voyage, Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni said some 200 people had been crowded into a 20-meter (66-foot) boat. High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Organization for Migration said in a joint statement.Īmong them were “children and entire families,” according to the U.N. More than 170 migrants were estimated to have been aboard the ship, the U.N. Standing next to the wreckage on the beach, a reporter for Italian RAI state TV noted a life preserver bearing the word “Smyrna,” a Turkish port also known as Izmir. Italian state TV quoted survivors as saying the boat had set out five days earlier from Turkey. Motorboats were expected to continue searching through the night, despite worsening weather conditions. ”Unfortunately, all the children are among the missing or were found dead on the beach.” A baby was reported among the dead. “All of the survivors are adults,″ Red Cross volunteer Ignazio Mangione said. Three big chunks of the vessel ended up on the beach near the town of Steccato di Cutro, where splintered pieces of bright blue wood littered the sand like matchsticks. The boat collided with the reefs in rough, wind-whipped seas. One man was taken into custody for questioning after fellow survivors indicated he was a trafficker, state TV said. WATCH: Death toll surges as migrants try to reach Europe One of the agency’s motorboats rescued two men suffering from hypothermia and recovered the body of a boy.Īs sundown approached, firefighters said 59 bodies had been found. Officials feared the death toll could top 100 since some survivors indicated the boat had as many as 200 passengers when it set out from Turkey, United Nations refugee and migration agencies said.Īt least 80 people were found alive, including some who reached the shore after the shipwreck just off Calabria’s coastline along the Ionian Sea, the Italian Coast Guard said. Rescuers recovered nearly 60 bodies, and dozens more people were missing in the rough waters. ROME (AP) - A wooden boat crowded with migrants smashed into rocky reefs and broke apart before dawn Sunday off the Italian coast, authorities said. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply.AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |