bA young child has died when a new ship sank off the Italian Mediterranean island of Lampedusa. The girl, who was just one year and eight months old, died on Monday when a boat carrying Tunisian refugees capsized, authorities said evening. Eight other prisoners, including two small children, remain missing. The boat with more than 50 people on board capsized in heavy seas when Lampedusa was already in sight.
The small island is one of the centers of illegal migration to Europe because it is located close to Africa. However, crossing in boats, often barely seaworthy, is extremely dangerous. In total, almost 150 thousand people without official documents have arrived in Italy by sea since January. Many boats depart from the Tunisian port city of Sfax.
According to eyewitnesses, the little girl was on board with her mother. After the accident, the woman was able to keep the child afloat, despite the high waves, until emergency services arrived. However, the girl, apparently, had already swallowed too much sea water and suffered severe hypothermia. Before he could be taken to port, he died.
Source: Frantfurter Allgemeine
