Italian authorities reported not less than eight deaths in a tragic shipwreck within the Mediterranean Sea on Wednesday.
The Italian coast guard disclosed {that a} boat carrying over 30 refugees capsized roughly 30 nautical miles (55 kilometers) southeast of the island of Lampedusa in worldwide waters.
Despite difficult circumstances, patrol boats efficiently rescued lots of the shipwrecked people, as per the coastguard.
Unfortunately, some migrants succumbed to hypothermia throughout the journey to Lampedusa.
Authorities on Wednesday night stated that 23 survivors had been counted after arriving on the small Italian island, which lies between Sicily and Tunisia.
News company ANSA reported that one of many 23 individuals who made it to shore later died, bringing the dying toll to 9. Six individuals had been receiving emergency medical remedy.
The precise circumstances of the accident had been nonetheless unclear. Some reviews from survivors had been contradictory. There had been additionally differing accounts as to how many individuals had been nonetheless lacking.
There was additionally no certainty concerning the origin of the capsized boat. Such ships typically come from Libya, Egypt or Tunisia. According to the authorities, a small little one is among the many fatalities.
Many migrants repeatedly attempt to attain European Union islands within the Mediterranean Sea, together with Italy’s Lampedusa and Sicily. Other migrants have headed for the Italian mainland, Malta, or Greek islands.
The migrant journeys, many undertaken in unseaworthy vessels, have resulted in quite a few devastating boat accidents, together with some with scores of deaths.
The variety of migrants making an attempt the journey to Europe has elevated sharply this yr. The Italian Interior Ministry has already counted greater than 150,000 individuals who reached Italy with out papers since January. The boats typically set off from the Tunisian port metropolis of Sfax.
Source: www.dailysabah.com