Human smugglers boat collides with Coast Guard vessel - 15 dead

As the Coast Guard states in its statement, during a scheduled patrol they spotted an inflatable speedboat with migrants moving without lights, towards the eastern coast of Chios, in the Myrsinidio sea area.

The operator, the Coast Guard states in its statement, did not comply with the lights and sounds today and, on the contrary, reversed course, while subsequently colliding with the right side of the Coast Guard vessel. "Due to the severity of the impact, the T/C capsized and sank, resulting in the fall of all its passengers into the sea," it adds.

The incident occurred within Greek territorial waters - 39 migrants were on board the dinghy

According to information from iefimerida from top sources, the tragedy occurred 1.5 miles from Chios, within Greek territorial waters.

The migrants' boat was an 8-meter dinghy, in which it is estimated that 39 migrants were on board. According to information from iefimerida, 38 are of Afghan origin and one is a Moroccan, whose involvement in the serious incident is being checked and it is being examined whether he was the smuggler.

No shots fired - The boat with the migrants crashed into the Coast Guard vessel

The same sources confirm that there were no shots fired as initially reported on Tuesday by the first information, nor rules of engagement.

As stated in the Coast Guard statement, the tragedy occurred when the boat carrying the migrants crashed into the Coast Guard's boat.

The Coast Guard released photos of the boat, where the signs of the collision are evident and, according to information, a crack has been caused.

The Coast Guard statement

In the evening hours yesterday, an inflatable patrol boat of the Hellenic Coast Guard (HLCG), which was carrying out a scheduled patrol, spotted an inflatable speedboat (RSG) with foreign passengers moving without navigation lights towards the eastern coast of Chios, in the Myrsinidio sea area.

The pilot of the RSG did not comply with the light and sound signals of the Coast Guard, instead he reversed course and the T/C hit the starboard side of the PLS. Due to the severity of the impact, the T/C overturned and sank, resulting in the fall of all its occupants into the sea.

Under the coordination of the Unified Search and Rescue Coordination Center (EKSED) of the Hellenic Coast Guard, a search and rescue operation was immediately launched. Four (4) Hellenic Coast Guard patrol boats and a private boat with private divers on board participated in the operation. Two Hellenic Air Force helicopters attempted from the air. A total of twenty-five (25) foreigners (7 men, 7 women and 11 minors) were picked up by another vessel. The injured were transported to the port, from where they were transported to Skylitseio Hospital. Subsequently, one woman of them died.

Two members of the Coast Guard crew (1 man and 1 woman) were also transported to the hospital. The male port officer has already been discharged and the woman remains hospitalized for further examinations. During the investigations, a total of 14 bodies (11 men and 3 women) were located and collected by 2 Coast Guard vessels.

The bodies were transported by Coast Guard to the port and then to Skylitseio Hospital, for an autopsy-autopsy. In total, there are fifteen (15) bodies. A preliminary investigation is being conducted by the Central Port Authority of Chios. The searches to locate possibly missing foreigners continue with five (05) patrol boats while a Coast Guard helicopter also took off. Any developments will be announced in a later press release. Available photographic material of the L.S.-EL.AKT. Inflatable Patrol Boat (PLS) has been posted on the website www.hcg.gr, where the impact point can be seen on the right side.