Two corpses were disembarked on the Italian island of Lampedusa on Monday night. Between Monday and Wednesday, almost 500 migrants arrived on board ten vessels, bringing the number of people hosted in the hotspot to a high not seen in several months.
Two corpses were disembarked on Lampedusa overnight between Monday and Tuesday (September 8-9). They had been on an eight-meter-long vessel alongside 44 Egyptians, Eritreans, Ethiopians, Gambians, and Algerians that was rescued by an Italian Financial Guard boat.
Among those disembarked were three suffering from hydrocarbon poisoning who were immediately taken to medical facilities for treatment.
The corpses were transferred to the morgue of the Cala Pisana cemetery, where they will undergo an autopsy. The two migrants may have died of hydrocarbon poisoning.
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Almost 500 migrants disembarked from 10 boats since 8/9
Over the night between Monday and Tuesday, five large boats were rescued with almost 300 people on board. Among them were migrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Sudan.
There was one infant of only a few months old and a woman in an advanced stage of pregnancy. The migrants said that they had departed from Abu Kamash in Libya.
On Tuesday, the Italian Financial Guard's Avallone patrol vessel rescued another boat -- this one measuring five meters long -- with 15 Eritreans, Sudanese, and Ivorians on board. These migrants said that they had departed from El Olga in Tunisia and that they had paid 1,200 euros each for the crossing. Two of them were taken to a clinic on Lampedusa, where they were hospitalized for hydrocarbon poisoning.
Another 106 migrants arrived on the island on two large boats, one of which arrived directly in Cala Uccello. On board there were about 69 Bangladeshi, Egyptians, and Somalis, including three minors. They were intercepted on the beach by the carabinieri and said that they had departed from Homs in Libya.
The other vessel had 37 Afghans, Bangladeshi, Egyptians, Eritreans, and Pakistanis onboard and was blocked by a motorboat of the Financial Police.
On Wednesday, despite poor weather conditions at sea, two other boats disembarked a total of 74 migrants, including an infant and a pregnant woman: A rubber boat carrying 22 Eritreans and a large boat with 52 Egyptians, Sudanese, Bangladeshi, and Syrians were intercepted by Coast Guard and Financial Police motorboats.
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Over 1,400 migrants in the hotspot, highest in months
Over the weekend, another 847 migrants arrived on Lampedusa on 15 vessels. The large number of arrivals in recent days brought the number of people hosted in the Imbriacola county hotspot to a high not seen in many months for the facilities.
Transfers to Sicily have slowed due to bad weather conditions.
On Wednesday morning, after a transfer of 300 people on Tuesday evening to Porto Empedocle, there were still 1,420 migrants at the hotspot. No transfers via ferry were scheduled for the day. However, 180 were slated to be flown to the city of Bergamo on the Italian mainland.
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