The migrants who arrived safely in Pozzallo tell of the horrors of the shipwreck in the Mediterranean in which 70 people are believed to have died, including a pregnant woman and a newborn baby.
Migrants who arrived safely in Pozzallo on June 19 on board the Italian coast guard vessel Diciotti have told the harrowing tale of their shipwreck and survival, in some cases clinging to the dead bodies of friends and relatives in order to stay alive. The group included the 42 migrants who were rescued by the US naval ship Trenton last week.
They report that there were 110 people on board the dinghy when they set off, meaning that at least 70 people including a pregnant woman, a newborn girl and her young mother died.
The tragedy of losing family and friends
"There were Nigerian women who said they lost friends and relatives during the tragedy and that they saw them drown," said Lucilla Garufi of UNICEF-Intersos, who was on board the Diciotti.
"The dinghy suddenly developed a hole in the middle and broke in half," said the survivors. "That was the end, we saw our sisters drown before our eyes, without being able to do anything to save them." The survivors will remain in a specialist centre where they will receive psychological assistance.
"Some of them have said they feel the journey has lasted a year. All they need now is assistance and a bit of humanity," said Teo di Piazza, coordinator of the Medicins sans Frontieres (MSF) psychological support team.
A child's unfulfilled dream
The group from the Trenton is part of the 400 men, 71 women and 38 minors who disembarked from the Diciotti in Pozzallo on June 19 in just under three hours. With the exception of those requiring urgent hospital treatment and a few special cases, they were taken to the hotspot in the port itself where they were "given aroof, clean clothes and food and where they could all have a shower", according to mayor Roberto Ammatuna.
One of the most touching stories is that of an eight-year-old boy from Eritrea who set out on his own as his parents could not afford the journey to pay for all of them. Now he hopes to raise the money needed to bring his parents to Italy.