This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/03/world/europe/italy-migrants-rescue.html
The article has changed 14 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Italy Races to Save Migrants on Vessel Said to Have No Crew | Italy Races to Save Migrants on Vessel Said to Have No Crew |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| For the second time in days, the Italian authorities on Friday were scrambling to rescue hundreds of migrants aboard an aging vessel heading in rough seas toward the Italian mainland, reportedly without a crew. | |
| One of the people on board the vessel, the Ezadeen, had sent a message saying, “We’re without crew, we’re heading toward the Italian coast, and we have no one to steer,” The Associated Press quoted an Italian Coast Guard official as saying on Friday. | One of the people on board the vessel, the Ezadeen, had sent a message saying, “We’re without crew, we’re heading toward the Italian coast, and we have no one to steer,” The Associated Press quoted an Italian Coast Guard official as saying on Friday. |
| The Italian authorities were said to have sent a helicopter toward the ship, sailing under the flag of Sierra Leone, to allow Coast Guard officials and doctors to be lowered onto the vessel. “Because of the difficult weather conditions, the ship can only be boarded from the air,” the Italian Air Force said in a statement. | The Italian authorities were said to have sent a helicopter toward the ship, sailing under the flag of Sierra Leone, to allow Coast Guard officials and doctors to be lowered onto the vessel. “Because of the difficult weather conditions, the ship can only be boarded from the air,” the Italian Air Force said in a statement. |
| After several hours of effort in rough seas, an Icelandic Coast Guard ship took the vessel under tow, according to Cmdr. Filippo Marini of the Italian Coast Guard. | After several hours of effort in rough seas, an Icelandic Coast Guard ship took the vessel under tow, according to Cmdr. Filippo Marini of the Italian Coast Guard. |
| Children and pregnant women were among the migrants, most of whom were believed to be Syrian, Commander Marini told The A.P. | Children and pregnant women were among the migrants, most of whom were believed to be Syrian, Commander Marini told The A.P. |
| In a posting on Twitter, the Italian Coast Guard said the vessel was carrying 450 migrants and was heading “without a crew toward the coast of Puglia.” | In a posting on Twitter, the Italian Coast Guard said the vessel was carrying 450 migrants and was heading “without a crew toward the coast of Puglia.” |
| News reports said the ship had first been spotted by a Coast Guard plane and the Icelandic patrol boat, part of a deployment by the European border agency Frontex. | News reports said the ship had first been spotted by a Coast Guard plane and the Icelandic patrol boat, part of a deployment by the European border agency Frontex. |
| But the seas were too rough to transfer migrants from the vessel, about 40 miles off Capo di Leuca on Italy’s southeastern tip. | But the seas were too rough to transfer migrants from the vessel, about 40 miles off Capo di Leuca on Italy’s southeastern tip. |
| The 50-year-old, 240-foot-long vessel had apparently veered off its original stated course to southern France from the island of Cyprus, according to Agence France-Presse. | The 50-year-old, 240-foot-long vessel had apparently veered off its original stated course to southern France from the island of Cyprus, according to Agence France-Presse. |
| With record numbers of migrants heading toward Italy, often from North Africa, the rescue unfolded just days after the Italian authorities boarded a freighter, the Moldovan-registered Blue Sky M, carrying more than 700 people. That vessel seemed to have been abandoned by its crew. | With record numbers of migrants heading toward Italy, often from North Africa, the rescue unfolded just days after the Italian authorities boarded a freighter, the Moldovan-registered Blue Sky M, carrying more than 700 people. That vessel seemed to have been abandoned by its crew. |
| Italian officers were lowered onto the Blue Sky M to bring it under control and to prevent it from crashing into the rocky coastline. | Italian officers were lowered onto the Blue Sky M to bring it under control and to prevent it from crashing into the rocky coastline. |