Authorities in Greece say they’ve safely evacuated dozens of migrants from a yacht reported in bother off the nation’s southern coast
ATHENS, Greece — Greek authorities mentioned Friday they safely evacuated dozens of migrants from a sailboat reported in bother off the southern coast of Greece, amid an increase in migration to the Mediterranean nation.
The coast guard mentioned all of the folks on board, estimated at as much as 70, have been transferred to a patrol boat in worldwide waters southwest of the Peloponnese area, and have been being taken to the port of Katakolo.
The evacuation adopted a big search and rescue operation involving three coast guard patrol and rescue boats, a navy ship, plane and 4 service provider vessels, a coast guard assertion mentioned.
It was launched after Greek maritime authorities acquired an alarm message early Friday reporting a ship at risk some 70 kilometers (40 miles) southwest of the port of Pylos within the Peloponnese.
The coast guard mentioned the migrants’ boat was not letting in water or in any other case at risk, as had been initially reported.
The incident occurred close to the positioning of a maritime tragedy in mid-June that left lots of of migrants {dead} or lacking after a fishing trawler sank in worldwide waters whereas touring from Libya to Italy. Greece was closely criticized for failing to soundly evacuate the ship earlier than it sank.
It was unclear the place the yacht had sailed from.
Worldwide waters off southwestern Greece are on a route utilized by smugglers lately to hold migrants in overloaded sailboats from Turkey to Italy. Longer and extra harmful than the quick crossing to Greece’s japanese Aegean Sea islands, it is utilized in an try to bypass Greek coast guard patrols within the Aegean.
Additionally Friday, the coast guard rescued 22 migrants from a stranded sailboat off the japanese Aegean island of Rhodes.
Greece has seen an increase in migrant arrivals from Turkey, principally by sea, in current weeks amid extra clement summer time crusing circumstances. ___
Comply with AP tales on international migration at https://apnews.com/hub/migration