79 Dead As Migrant Boat Sinks Off Greece, Over 100 Rescued So Far

The death toll from the sinking of a fishing boat carrying migrants off the coast of southern Greece in the Ionian Sea climbed to 79, BBC reported.

Rescued migrants find shelter at a depot, following a shipwreck offshore in Kalamata, Greece on June 14.

Source : Getty

New Delhi: The death toll from the sinking of a fishing boat carrying migrants off the coast of southern Greece in the Ionian Sea climbed to 79, BBC reported. More than 100 people have been rescued so far in an operation complicated by strong winds, the coastguard said. 

The government said that this is one of Greece's deadliest shipwrecks and has declared three days of mourning. According to the BBC, the boat went down about 80 km southwest of Pylos after the coast guard said the vessel had refused help.

Along with navy vessels, Wednesday's rescue operation included an army plane and helicopter as well as six other boats that were in the area.

"Since very early Wednesday, an extensive rescue operation is underway off Pylos, after a fishing boat capsized with a large number of migrants onboard," the coastguard said.

Greek state broadcaster ERT said the boat was en route to Italy from the Libyan town of Tobruk, which lies south of the Greek island of Crete. Greek authorities did not confirm the vessel's departure port.

Greek coast guard spokesperson Nikos Alexiou, speaking to Greece's MEGA TV, said authorities did not know how many were on the boat, especially below deck, but reported it was crowded. "...There were too many people on the outer deck. It was full," he said.

The Greek coast guard said EU border agency Frontex first spotted the boat on Tuesday in international waters southwest of Pylos, and Italian authorities then alerted Greece to the vessel's presence.

Alarm Phone, which operates a trans-European network supporting rescue operations, said it informed Greek authorities, Frontex and the Greek division of the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR late on Tuesday afternoon.

The migration ministry would begin looking for accommodation for those rescued once they are processed by the coastguard to determine gender and nationality, an official said, according to AFP.

About 72,000 refugees and migrants have arrived so far this year in Europe's front-line Mediterranean countries, according to United Nations data, with the majority landing in Italy and around 6,500 in Greece.

Nearly 1,000 people are estimated to have died or gone missing in the Mediterranean this year, according to the U.N.