Last Update: February 27, 2023, 18:39 IST
Rescuers work on the beach where the bodies of refugees were found following a shipwreck, in Cattro, Italy’s east coast, Calabria region (Image: Reuters)
Boat crews and their belongings washed up on the shoreline in Calabria, Italy
Italy’s coast guard searched the sea and beaches on Monday after a shipwreck off Calabria, as the death toll rose to 62 and children who saw loved ones drown were cared for.
A packed wooden boat broke up and sank in stormy seas off the southern coast of Italy early Sunday, with bodies, shoes and debris washed up along a long stretch of shoreline.
A coast guard official told AFP that the death toll had risen to 62 on Monday and that the number was likely to rise.
Sergio Di Dato, head of the Doctors Without Borders (MSF) team that provides psychological support to survivors, said there have been cases of children being orphaned by the disaster.
He told reporters, “A 12-year-old Afghan boy lost his entire family, all nine of them – four siblings, his parents and other very close relatives.”
Katro City firefighters prepared a speed boat to freshen the area as helicopters flew overhead.
At Le Castella, where a 15th-century fort dominates the shoreline, an AFP journalist saw coastguards recover the body of a woman who appeared to be in her early 20s.
The Save the Children charity said on Twitter it was supporting survivors from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Syria, including 10 minors who were traveling with their families.
“Many missing are minors,” it wrote.
loud boom
The charity said that the survivors described how “during the night, near the shore, they heard a loud boom, the boat broke apart and they all fell overboard.”
The survivors “were in shock… some say they saw relatives fall into the water and disappear or die”.
It is being told that the boat had left from Izmir in Turkey last week. Media reports said on Monday that three suspected human traffickers had been arrested and police were looking for a fourth.
David Morabito, a rescue diver in Calabria, told Rai state broadcaster that he had recovered the bodies of the young twins from the water.
“When you see the little, lifeless bodies of children, those images tug at your heart,” Morabito said.
“So many children died. A tragedy,” he said.
The disaster has further fueled debate in Italy over search and rescue measures to rescue migrants in distress on the central Mediterranean route, the world’s deadliest route.
Far-right Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, elected in September, has vowed to crack down on migrant arrivals.
His government last week pushed through a controversial law that forces migrant aid charities to carry out only one life-saving rescue mission at a time before going directly to ports, which are often far away.
Critics say the measure violates international law and will result in more drownings.
According to the Interior Ministry, almost 14,000 migrants have arrived in Italy by sea so far this year, 5,200 more than in the same period last year.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)