43 drown off Greek coast
At least 43 migrants drown when their wooden sailboat capsizes on the voyage from Turkey to Europe. 17 of the dead are children. Greek Coast Guard officials are unclear as to why the boat sank off the coast of Kalymnos, but say that winds were strong at the time. Fishing vessels take part in search and rescue operations. One local fisherman, Michalis, seemed shocked by the migrants’ equipment.
They weren’t wearing life jackets. I don’t believe it. They couldn’t swim. The hospital is now full of dead people.
Boat sinks
Boat carrying an estimated 137 migrants sinks south of Sicily. Survivors say that up to 40 people fell into the sea. Save the Children’s representative:
They [survivors] said there were 137 people aboard an inflatable boat that deflated or exploded – it wasn’t clear – and that some of them fell overboard.
Boat capsizes
A boat carrying more than 700 migrants capsizes near Libyan waters. Italian ships, the Maltese Navy and commercial vessels involved in the rescue operation. Twenty eight people have been rescued. Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat:
Rescuers are literally trying to find people alive among the dead floating in the water…If confirmed, it would be the biggest migrant tragedy to have taken place in the Mediterranean in recent times.