At least 43 migrants have died in a boat sank off the Italian coast at dawn on Sunday. The authorities found bodies on the beach of Steccato di Cutro, in the Italian province of Crotone, and the sea, the Italian news agency Ansa reported.
The death toll could rise because not all bodies have been recovered from the sea. According to the news agency, many women and children were victims. About eighty people have been rescued, and 21 have been taken to hospital. But it is feared that dozens of people may still not have been found. Employees of the local port authority and the police continue to search for survivors. However, the search is difficult due to the high waves.
The boat is believed to have had about 250 people on board, mainly from Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan. The old wooden fishing boat broke through the rough sea and sank. According to local media, the boat was not resistant to the high waves. Only the wreckage appears to be left of the vessel. The mayor of Steccato di Cutro said wreckage could be seen everywhere, on the beach and up to 300 meters offshore.
“This is a rude awakening that must shake up the community so that such tragedies do not happen,” Rosario Valastro, the president of the Italian Red Cross, wrote on Twitter. “Calabria is in mourning for this tragedy,” said Roberto Occhiuto, president of the southern Italian region, in a statement.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is shocked by the tragedy. She wants the countries where the migrants come from and where they go to sea to be more cooperative in preventing these dramas and people are not encouraged to take the risk. Matteo Piantedosie, the Italian Minister of the Interior, called in an initial response for stricter action against people smugglers. First, he believes that such boats must be prevented from sailing.
According to the Italian Ministry of the Interior, 13,067 migrants have arrived by sea this year, up to and including last Thursday. A new law from Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government complicates the work of civilian rescuers at sea. However, most migrants arrive with their vessels.