Nineteen migrants have been found dead after a small boat got into difficulty in the Mediterranean Sea. It is believed the victims likely died of hypothermia, but the cause of death still needs to be verified.
Officials said the bodies were recovered by the Italian coast guard, which also rescued some 58 people after intercepting the dinghy that was in distress around 80 nautical miles off the island of Lampedusa on Tuesday night. Coastguard spokesperson Roberto D’Arrigo said the rescue was carried out during rough sea conditions. He said: “We were the only ones able to intervene, as there were no other ships or rescue teams in the area.
“Sea conditions were pretty extreme, with waves of more than 6-7 meters (20-23 feet).”
The migrants had likely departed from Libya, with the rescue mission taking place in the Libyan search and rescue zone, he added.
The coastguard said the survivors were brought to Lampedusa after a 10-hour trip and are in the care of local health services.
Filippo Mannino, the mayor of the small Italian island, said seven people, including two children, were being treated in hospital for “hypothermia and intoxication from hydrocarbon fumes”.
Lampedusa is the main entry point to Europe for migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea from North Africa, with thousands dying during the perilous journey.
Most of the deaths have been attributed to small boats setting off from the coasts of Tunisia and Libya.
The most recent deadly shipwreck off Lampedusa happened in August last year, when a boat carrying nearly 100 migrants capsized in international waters, killing at least 26 people.
More than 830 migrants have died or gone missing in the Mediterranean so far this year, according to the United Nations’ International Organisation for Migration (IOM).
In February, the agency called for greater efforts to save lives at sea after reporting 2026 had seen the “deadliest start to a year” in the Mediterranean on record.
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