A 17-year-old boy died two hours after being taken on board by the crew of the German-flagged Sea Watch 5 ship. The young man was found unconscious at the bottom of a wooden boat, crushed by dozens of other people who, like him, were on the boat awaiting an urgent evacuation which never took place. The German NGO writes Republic, is also with four other people in a very serious condition, all burned by the mixture of sea water and stagnant fuel which was at the bottom of the boat and in which they were forced to wait, crouching, for hours. Sea Watch 5 urgently requested the Italian authorities to evacuate the four people in critical medical condition. The first request was sent around 1 p.m., but received no response. “After approximately two hours, and without any authorization to launch an evacuation operation, a 17-year-old boy died on board our ship. Our teams found him unconscious on the lower deck of the wooden boat,” say the volunteers of the German NGO. Republic. In total, around 50 people were traveling on the blue wooden boat. The Sea Watch 5 continues to sail north while waiting for the Interior Ministry to authorize disembarkation in the nearest possible port.
Cover photo: ANSA | The vessel Geo Barents, from Médecins Sans Frontières, during a rescue operation (February 19, 2024)
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