At least 79 people have died and more than 100 have been rescued after their fishing ship tipped over near the coast of southern Greece. But survivors and Greek officials say that hundreds more migrants (移民) were on board. The government says this is one of Greece’s biggest migrant tragedies, and has declared three days of mourning.
The boat went down about 80 km (50 miles) south-west of Pylos. The coastguard said the boat had been spotted in international waters late on Tuesday. No one on board was wearing life jackets. Quoting a timeline provided by the shipping ministry, Greek public broadcaster ERT said authorities had made contact with the boat via satellite phone on several occasions and offered help, but were repeatedly told: “We want nothing more than to go on to Italy.”
A few hours later, someone on the boat informed the Greek coastguard that the ship’s engine had failed to work correctly. Shortly after, the boat tipped over, taking only ten to fifteen minutes to sink completely. A search and rescue operation was triggered but complicated by strong winds.
Alarm Phone, an emergency helpline for migrants in trouble at sea, said the coastguard was “aware of the ship being in suffering for hours before any help was sent”, adding that authorities “had been informed by different sources” that the boat was in trouble.
The boat is thought to have been going from Libya to Italy, with most of those on board believed to be men in their 20s. They had been travelling for days, according to local media reports, which added that the boat had been approached by a Maltese cargo ship on Tuesday afternoon that supplied food and water. ERT said that three people suspected of being the traders in human beings had been taken to the central port authority in Kalamata and were being questioned.
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