The drowning occurred when their overcrowded vessel, departing from Libya's Zuwara city, encountered treacherous waves reaching 1.5 meters (4.9 feet). Rescuers from RESQSHIP managed to save about 65 individuals, including the sisters' mother and brother, alongside other vulnerable passengers such as three pregnant women and a seven-month-old baby. Tragically, the sisters, aged nine, 11, and 17, were discovered submerged in the water during a chaotic evacuation effort.
Barbara Sartore, communications coordinator for the rescue ship Nadir, recounted the horrifying scene as survivors were being assisted. Amid the chaos of the overcrowded vessel being swamped with water, screams alerted rescuers to the presence of the sisters' bodies. Sartore described the dark, tumultuous environment, emphasizing the difficulty of locating the girls amidst rising panic.
Many rescued individuals suffered from severe chemical burns due to a mixture of seawater and gasoline inside the boat. As per the charity, one person who had fallen overboard remains missing. The Italian Coast Guard assisted in transporting 14 rescues to Lampedusa, while the remaining survivors were brought ashore by RESQSHIP along with the girls' bodies.
Crews voiced their anguish over the tragedy, with Katja Schnitzer, a crewmember, stating that such an occurrence is "unimaginable" and indicative of the dangers faced by those seeking safety. The ethnicity of the sisters and other survivors has not been disclosed.
According to UN agencies, the central Mediterranean crossing has resulted in over 700 migrant fatalities this year alone. They continue to advocate for increased search and rescue operations, highlighting the need for improved safety measures for survivors upon disembarkation.
