41 Migrants Die After Boat Capsizes Off Italian Island, 4 Survive In Shipwreck: Report
The boat initially set off on Thursday from the city of Sfax in Tunisia ¡ª a notorious hotbed for migrant smuggling ¡ª but the boat turned over and sank within a few hours of departure, Ansa reported, citing accounts from the survivors.
Forty-one migrants have died in a shipwreck last week in the central Mediterranean, said a report by Reuters citing Italian authorities on Wednesday. Four survivors who reached the Italian island of Lampedusa told rescuers that they were on a boat carrying forty-five people, including three children, the Ansa news agency reported.
Sea-Watch via AP
4 survived the boat accident
The boat initially set off on Thursday from the city of Sfax in Tunisia ¡ª a notorious hotbed for migrant smuggling ¡ª but the boat turned over and sank within a few hours of departure, Ansa reported, citing accounts from the survivors. Later, it was found that the vessel reportedly travelled for around six hours before a giant wave capsized it.
The survivors consisted of three men and a woman from Ivory Coast and Guinea who said they had initially been rescued by a cargo ship before being transferred onto an Italian coast guard ship. Only 15 people had been wearing safety vests, but they also drowned, the survivors said.
capsize
Around 93,700 migrants arrived in Italy by sea this year
Government data from Italy's Interior Ministry shows that about 93,700 migrants arrived in Italy by sea this year, with the most prominent nationalities of migrants being from Guinea and the Ivory Coast.
This represents an increase of more than double compared to the same period last year. While many are intercepted off the North African coast, most of those who get through are picked up by the Italian coast guard or charity boats who take them to reception centres.
Ap
Mediterranean crossing is one of the most dangerous migrant routes
The Mediterranean crossing is one of the most dangerous migrant routes in the world. According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), almost 28,000 people have gone missing trying to cross the sea since 2014.
Separately, the Tunisian Coast Guard in Sfax said on Monday that they rescued two people and recovered 11 bodies of migrants whose boat had capsized in Tunisian waters. The boat was carrying a total of 57 people from sub-Saharan African countries, and 44 other passengers were still missing, Tunisian authorities told state television on Monday.
For more on news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News.
Senior Writer at Indiatimes. She writes on Lifestyle, fashion, beauty, astrology and health.
