A heartbreaking tragedy unfolded in the central Mediterranean after three young sisters, aged nine, 11, and 17, drowned while attempting the dangerous sea crossing in a rubber boat packed with migrants. The German rescue charity RESQSHIP confirmed that the vessel, which had departed from Zuwara in Libya, was carrying around 65 people when it began taking on water after waves as high as 1.5 meters repeatedly crashed over it. Survivors, including the girls’ mother, brother, three pregnant women, and a seven-month-old baby, were rescued in a harrowing operation.
According to RESQSHIP, the “dangerously overcrowded” boat quickly filled with water in the middle of the night, causing panic among the passengers. Barbara Sartore, the charity’s communications coordinator aboard the rescue ship Nadir, described the horrifying moment when rescuers discovered the sisters’ bodies. Survivors were being evacuated one by one when screams rang out and someone pointed to the water inside the boat. It soon became clear that the sisters, seated deep inside the vessel, had already drowned unnoticed in the chaos and darkness. “When the survivors realized, it was sheer horror,” Sartore said.
Many of the survivors also suffered severe chemical burns from a mixture of seawater and petrol inside the boat, requiring urgent medical treatment. One individual who fell overboard during the ordeal remains missing.
Italy’s coastguard later evacuated 14 people to the island of Lampedusa, while the rescue ship transported the remaining survivors and the bodies of the three sisters. “What happened to the three sisters is unimaginable, as is the danger that people on the move face in search of safety,” said Katja Schnitzer, a crewmember of the Nadir.
Libya has long served as a major departure point for migrants hoping to reach Europe, but the central Mediterranean remains one of the deadliest migration routes in the world. According to UN agencies, more than 700 people have already lost their lives this year while attempting the crossing. Humanitarian organizations are urging an increase in search and rescue missions and stronger guarantees of safety for survivors when they reach shore.
This devastating incident highlights both the desperation that drives families to risk everything in search of a better future and the urgent need for coordinated international action to prevent further loss of life in the Mediterranean.
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