Not less than 15 people have died after two boats carrying migrants sank in Greek waters, and rescuers were on the lookout for dozens still missing, authorities said early Thursday. The coast guard said 15 bodies had been recovered near the eastern island of Lesbos after a dinghy carrying about 40 people sank. Five people were rescued and three had been situated on a rocky outcrop near the location of the sinking. A second rescue effort was launched several hundred miles to the west, near the island of Kythira, where a sailboat carrying about 100 migrants sank late Wednesday.
Officials said 30 people had been rescued after that boat hit rocks off the village port of Diakofti on the east of the island. Winds in the world were as much as 45 mph.
“We could see the boat smashing against the rocks and other people climbing up those rocks to try to save themselves. It was an unbelievable sight,” Martha Stathaki, an area resident told The Associated Press. “All of the residents here went all the way down to the harbor to try to help.”
Fire service rescuers lowered ropes to assist migrants climb up cliffs on the seafront. Local officials said a college in the world could be opened to offer shelter for the rescued. Navy divers were also expected to reach Thursday.
Most migrants reaching Greece travel from neighboring Turkey, but smugglers have modified routes in recent months in an effort to avoid heavily patrolled waters around Greek islands near the Turkish coastline.
Kythira is a few 250 miles west of Turkey and on a route often utilized by smugglers to bypass Greece and head on to Italy.