Six migrants died and 40 were missing in a boat crash off the Italian island of Lampedusa late Tuesday, Italian media reported.
Italian Coast Guard ships rescued 10 people and resumed searching for other survivors Wednesday morning.
The Italian Coast Guard did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for confirmation of the reports.
Survivors of the crash said they had set sail from the town of Sfax in Tunisia on the evening of March 16 in an inflatable boat with 56 people on board. Many of the migrants fell into the water during the crossing due to strong waves at sea, they said.
In September 2023, the authorities of Lampedusa declared a state of emergency due to the arrival of more than 6,000 migrants on the island overnight.
