'We clung to corpses trying to save ourselves'
The survivors of the shipwreck off the coast of Sicily have begun to tell stories about the dramatic event that left more than 800 migrants dead.
And of course, all of them are tragic and painful.
The testimonials are reported by Gianluigi Bove, captain of Gregoretti ship, carrying 27 of the 28 survivors of the shipwreck off the coasts of Libya, which arrived on Monday to the port of Catania.
“They told us that there were between 700 and 900 people on board, and the most of them were crammed in the hold where they were trapped after the capsizing of the boat," he said.
They died like rats. Too many men, women, children have drowned. Those who could save themselves clung where they could, to the remains of the wreck, to pieces of wood, but also to the drowned bodies of their fellows. The men of the Coast Guard found them like that.
"Our ship arrived to the area at about 2am," one of the Coast Guard representatives said.
"There was no trace of the boat, except for some debris and oil slicks. We were able to recover two castaways while 26 others were already aboard the Portuguese ship".
Then we have the stories of the survivors. Some of them come from Sub-Saharan African countries – Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan - but also from Bangladesh. All of them are male, in good health, but surely still upset and astounded by what they have seen and survived.
They talk about the departure, when they were 950, from a port located 50 kilometres from Tripoli. There were also 200 women and 50 children, and many of them were closed in the hold, trying to save space.
They told of a collision with King Jacob mercantile, which had arrived in the area to offer help. The collision has cost the lives of "at least 800 people," according to Carlotta Sami, spokeswoman for the UNHCR.
Among the survivors there are also two suspected smugglers, both accused of multiple manslaughter, shipwreck and illegal immigration.
Survivors also chillingly told of the endless hours spent in the water, looking for the bodies of their loved ones.
"We clung to everything, pieces of wood, lifesavers and also to those flailing next to us. Many of them went under water because they were too heavy. We clung to corpses, too”.
They tried to explain themselves in every way, in French, English, Arabic, providing their listeners fragments of their odyssey. And they cried too, every word is a deep stab that they won’t easily forget.
"The most tragic moment was when we brought back on board a little boy, he was no more than 12 or 13 years old, but no one recognised him, no one knew who he was," said Lieutenant Bove.
"It was one the most dramatic moment."
Many also referred to a journal, a notebook found in the Mediterranean waters, closed in a bag attached to a life jacket worn by a body that was found on board. A precious testimony, at least from a human perspective, and something that has to be preserved in memory of the victims. It has been delivered to the men of the SCO, the Central Operational Service of the State Police, who will translate it.
The pain of this remarkable tragedy affects people on a global scale. Before such devastating images, everyone has to feel human.
"Every time you hope to save at least one of them but after 20 hours watching the sea your eyes burn and when you cannot even see one, you can only cry," said Giuseppe Margiotta, the captain of a fishing boat who rushed to the area to help out.
"You know that they all are under the sea, even if you do not want to believe it”.
National news break – April 22
