Bodies of twenty migrants found on two boats near Crete
Greek authorities recovered the bodies of twenty migrants from two boats while rescuing dozens of survivors trying to reach the island of Crete, nos.nl reported.
The victims likely departed from Libya. High winds battered the region over recent days, according to the reporting.
Rescue operations and hospital admissions
Crews found twelve bodies on one vessel and brought eighteen survivors ashore with the help of a passing freighter’s crew, nos.nl reported. Four individuals went to the hospital, where one person died.
An anonymous coast guard employee told the Reuters news agency that survivors were shivering from the cold when rescuers found them.
Sudanese nationals on the second boat
The Greek coast guard stated that twenty-eight people were rescued from a second boat on Saturday after an initial body was discovered. All of the survivors from that vessel are Sudanese.
A search of the same ship overnight uncovered seven additional bodies, nos.nl reported.
Frontex spots more migrant vessels
The European border and coast guard agency Frontex spotted at least three more migrant boats on the Mediterranean Sea, meaning the death toll could still rise, nos.nl reported.
One vessel carried roughly one hundred people about 87 kilometers off the coast of Crete, while two other ships each transported between forty and fifty individuals.
Coast guard arrests suspected smuggler after Tobroek departure
The coast guard picked up forty-three people from a ship 55 kilometers from Crete, arresting a 17-year-old from South Sudan for suspected human smuggling after other occupants identified him as the leader, nos.nl reported.
According to the coast guard, the migrants left the Libyan port city of Tobroek on Wednesday and paid between two thousand and twenty-five hundred US dollars each for the crossing to Europe.
Questions about migrant boat deaths and origins
What caused the deaths on the migrant boats?
Greek authorities have not yet announced an official cause of death for the twenty migrants found on the two vessels, according to nos.nl.
Where did the journeys originate?
The coast guard stated that the migrants departed from the Libyan port city of Tobroek on Wednesday, paying two thousand to twenty-five hundred US dollars each for the crossing attempt toward Europe.
How many people were rescued from the vessels?
Crews brought eighteen survivors ashore from the first boat using a passing freighter, rescued twenty-eight Sudanese nationals from the second boat, and retrieved forty-three individuals from a separate ship further off the coast of Crete.
Keep reading