2 small children die in Mediterranean migration voyage, charity says

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BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Four people, including two small children, died during a migration voyage in the Mediterranean, a German charity involved in their rescue said.

Following a mayday alert by the European Border and Coast Guard Agency Frontex, the nonprofit group RESQSHIP said its vessel NADIR found 62 people adrift in international waters under Malta's search and rescue jurisdiction. The migrants, who included nationals of Sierra Leone, Ghana and Nigeria, had departed western Libya three days earlier on a fragile rubber boat that suffered an engine failure.

By the time the NADIR reached them, two children aged 3 and 4 were dead and a third person was found unconscious and died, the humanitarian group said. Survivors also reported that a fourth person had drowned during the journey.

An Italian coast guard vessel arrived four hours later, according to the German charity, and evacuated six people in critical condition, including two babies and their mothers, as their boat was already full with other rescued migrants. The rest of the survivors, many suffering from skin burns caused by the harmful mixture of sea water and fuel, were taken to the Italian island of Lampedusa.

“This tragedy could have been avoided. It is yet another example of the failure of European migration policies,” RESQSHIP said in a statement. “Instead of coordinating support and facilitating safe passages, Europe is abandoning defenceless people – with deadly consequences. Children dying of thirst on the move is an inexcusable political failure.”

Frontex confirmed that one of its aircraft had identified a white rubber boat adrift in the Maltese Search and Rescue (SAR) region at 1:05 p.m. UTC and that it had informed all relevant Maritime Rescue Coordination Centers, including Malta's and issued a mayday alert via radio.

“The mayday relay clearly indicated an urgent situation involving a vessel in distress and provided coordinates to ensure rapid action by nearby ships and authorities,” Frontex said in a statement. “The closest vessel at the time was NADIR, which was approximately 15 nautical miles from the scene."

The Maltese Armed Forces did not immediately return questions sent by email from The Associated Press.

The Mediterranean Sea is the world's deadliest migration route with nearly 32,000 recorded fatalities since 2014, according to the International Organization for Migration. This year alone, at least 565 migrants have died on the sea crossing to Europe.

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