CALABRIA: At least 40 migrants, including a few months old baby, died after their overloaded boat sank in stormy seas off Italy’s southern Calabria region early on Sunday, rescue services said.
“At the current time, nearly 80 people have been rescued, including some people who managed to reach the shore after the boat sank,” the coastguard said in a statement.
The coastguard said that 43 bodies had been found along the coastline.
Rescue workers told AFP that the boat was carrying “over 200 people”, about 50 of whom had been safely rescued.
Regional governor Roberto Occhiuto said that a large number of people drowned, including children. Lots are missing. Calabria is in mourning after this tragedy.
According to Italian media, the overloaded boat broke up in violent sea waves off the coastal city of Crotone at dawn.
While quoting a rescue worker, AGI news agency reported that an infant of just a few months old was among the victims.
Italy’s Prime Minister expresses deep pain over the deaths
Expressing “deep pain” over the latest deaths, far-right Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said it was “criminal to put a boat of barely 66 feet (20 meters) to sea with 200 people onboard and a bad weather forecast”.
“The government is trying to prevent departures, and with them, this type of tragic incident,” she added in a statement. She said that it demanded the “greatest” collaboration between states from where migrants originate.
The latest such incident comes just days after the government pushed through parliament a new law on rescuing would-be migrants.
The new law forces migrant aid boats to make only a single rescue attempt at a time, which may risk increasing the number of drownings in the central Mediterranean.
The route is said to be the most dangerous crossing in the world for those seeking asylum in Europe.
Many people fleeing poverty and conflict, hoping for a better life in European countries, cross from Africa via Italy.
According to the interior ministry, around 14,000 migrants have arrived in Italy by the sea this year, up from 5,200 during the same period last year and 4,200 in the first two months of 2021. – AFP
