Up to 500 individuals are lacking after an overcrowded fishing boat carrying migrants capsized within the Mediterranean Sea, the United Nations has mentioned.
Seventy-eight individuals are recognized to have died after the vessel received into problem and sank 45 miles off the coast of Greece within the early hours of Wednesday.
Speaking at a briefing in Geneva on Friday, a spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights mentioned: “The high commissioner expressed his condolences to those who have lost loved ones – 78 people are known to have died and up to 500 are missing, among them large numbers of women and children.”
Greek authorities had already confirmed they recovered 78 our bodies and rescued 104 males.
It is just not recognized precisely how many individuals have been on the boat, however the charity Alarm Phone, which acquired a number of misery calls, mentioned it was round 750.
There have been no girls or kids rescued thus far, with many fearing they have been trapped on the decrease deck and dragged down into the water when the boat sank.
Some of the tales now rising from the catastrophe create an image of unthinkably horrific circumstances onboard.
A Greek social employee who sorted a number of the survivors, instructed Sky News that she had heard that water ran out on the boat days earlier than it sank, forcing passengers to drink their very own urine and suck water from the melting fridges.
Many of them are struggling extreme psychological trauma.
She recalled one survivor who instructed her that “for two hours he was swimming surrounded by the bodies of children” and a younger man in his 20s, who “wanted to commit suicide, wanted to jump into the sea and kill himself because he couldn’t take it anymore”.
Not anticipating any extra survivors
The survivors have been moved to an immigration centre in central Greece. The warehouse the place they have been staying is now being cleaned and the help companies have left.
It is evident they don’t seem to be anticipating any extra survivors.
The media consideration has shifted to the Hellenic Coast Guard workplace within the port of Kalamata as questions at the moment are arising over whether or not they may have executed extra to avert the catastrophe.
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One Greek newspaper quoted an nameless supply claiming {that a} rope had been hooked up to the boat round three hours earlier than it capsized.
There are additionally questions on why nothing was executed to rescue at the least a number of the passengers when it was apparent the boat was dangerously overcrowded, with migrants onboard and due to this fact nearly definitely individuals smugglers too.
The coastguard has beforehand mentioned it acted in accordance with worldwide legislation as a result of the boat was in worldwide waters.
Source: information.sky.com”