Italy’s coast guard retrieved 19 bodies from a migrant boat that failed in its journey from Libya to Europe, saving 58 lives in the process, officials announced on Wednesday. The deceased, mostly male and one female, succumbed to hypothermia, reported spokespeople from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and MSF.
The rescued individuals, five of whom were children, have been transported to Lampedusa island; however, three passengers remain unaccounted for, according to a rescue official who wished to remain unnamed. The German group Sea-Watch implicated these deaths in a growing crisis, claiming 104 people died at sea over the last 72 hours, with 18 drowning earlier Wednesday off Turkey’s coast.
Sea-Watch expressed alarm at the persisting humanitarian emergency, citing those stranded at sea without aid. IOM figures disclosed that this latest calamity near Lampedusa raises Mediterranean migrant deaths to 643 this year – one of the deadliest since 2014. The perilous journey started from western Libya on March 30, carrying individuals from nations like Ghana and Sudan. Adverse weather remains a significant obstacle for North African migrants attempting such crossings.