Rome, March 7. A 3-year-old girl whose body was found at sea today off Steccato di Cutro beach in the Calabria region of southern Italy is the 71st official victim of the shipwreck which occurred on 26 February just 150 meters from these shores. .
Since the day of the sinking, search efforts by air and naval personnel, divers, drones and ground personnel from the Coast Guard, Police, Rifles, Finance Guard, Fire and Protection civilian have not ceased.
With the recovery of the young girl’s body, at least 17 minors lost their lives in one of the most tragic shipwrecks in Italy, reminiscent of the one that occurred on October 3, 2013 while a few kilometers from the island of Lampedusa a ship sank and 368 migrants perished.
So far, 56 of the 71 bodies found have been identified, mostly Afghans, Iranians, Pakistanis and Syrians, while the search for the missing is still ongoing, as survivors claimed some 180 people were traveling on the fishing boat. fears that the final toll will exceed 100 while 81 people have been saved alive.
Only two of the victims have been repatriated to Pakistan, where their relatives are, as hardly anyone can bear the cost of sending the body back to their country of origin.
Indeed, this Monday a 25-year-old Afghan was buried in the Crotore cemetery after his relatives decided so and this will be the case for most of the victims.
While the controversy continues, as well as the investigations of the prosecutor’s office of Crotone on what happened and the possible responsibilities.
According to the first reconstructions, a plane from the European operation Frontex reported the presence of a ship in the area with migrants on board, but the Italian security forces assured that they had only been informed of the presence of a vessel “which appeared to be sailing steadily, at six knots and in good buoyancy, with only one person visible on the deck of the vessel”.
As the SAR (search and rescue) protocol was not activated, only the border control protocol, no one intervened and only at half past five in the morning a member of the coastguard called his fisherman friend of Steccato di Cutro and told him to approach to see what was happening, then he found the terrible scene of dozens of dead people floating in the sea.
In addition, according to “La Repubblica”, the migrants’ lawyers will also ask to investigate the help that should have arrived from the land, since they believe that many could have been saved with the arrival of medical personnel on the beach.
The government has confirmed that it will hold its council of ministers next Thursday at the site of the sinking, thus responding to the controversy over the absence of the Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, at the site of the EFE tragedy.
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