At least 59 people died on Sunday after a wood boat carrying migrants crashed into rocks off the coast of southern Italy, authorities said.
The Italian coastguard said at least 81 people were found alive, “a few of them managed to succeed in shore after a shipwreck”. Amongst those on board were children and families; only adults survived the terrible catastrophe.
“All of the survivors are adults,” said Red Cross volunteer Ignazio Mangione. “Unfortunately, all children are among the many missing or have been found dead on the beach.”
Among the many dead were a month-old baby and an 8-year-old boy.
The crash happened near Steccato di Cutro, a seaside resort on the east coast of Calabria that’s the tip of Italy’s boot.
“At present, 80 people have been found alive – some managed to succeed in shore after a shipwreck – and 43 bodies have been found along the coast,” the coast guard said in a statement.
Greater than 170 migrants were on board a boat that crashed into rocks “a few meters offshore”, authorities said. The Coast Guard continued to look for other potential survivors.
While the rescue mission was underway, cloth-covered bodies were being dropped at the sports stadium in the closest town, Crotone.
The mayor of Cutro, Antonio Ceraso, told news channel SkyTG24 that girls and youngsters were among the many dead, and that the migrants’ boat had “disintegrated” in the grim conditions at sea.
The wreck was left across 984 feet of coast.
In a broken voice, Ceraso said he had witnessed “a spectacle you’ll never wish to see in your life … a gruesome sight … that stays with you for all times.”
Firefighters were combing the ocean on jet skis, but difficult conditions hampered the operation, spokesman for Calabria firefighters Danilo Maida told Reuters.
Initial reports say 27 bodies have washed up on the beach, with more found in the water. There have been conflicting reports concerning the origins of the migrants, with some news agencies reporting that they got here from Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan; others said they got here from Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria.
State television quoted survivors as saying the boat had arrived five days earlier from Turkey.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed “deep sadness” over the fatal incident and pledged to halt maritime migration to forestall further deaths at sea.
Since taking office in October, Meloni’s government has cracked down on migration by restricting the activities of charities rescuing migrants with tough recent laws. Italy is one in all the predominant entry points for migrants looking for to succeed in Europe by sea, but its central Mediterranean route can be extremely dangerous.
In keeping with a project by the International Organization for Migration, 20,333 people have died or gone missing in the Central Mediterranean since 2014.
“That is a huge tragedy that demonstrates absolutely the have to act decisively against illegal migration channels,” Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said in a separate statement.
It was “essential” to stop sea crossings, which provide migrants “an illusory mirage of a higher life” in Europe, enrich traffickers and “cause tragedies like today”, he added.
During a Sunday speech in St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis said he was praying for everybody involved in the shipwreck.
With postal wires