At least 15 migrants killed after boat collides with Greek coast guard off Chios

At least 15 migrants are dead after an inflatable migrant boat traveling without navigation lights collided with a Greek patrol boat off the coast of Chios in the Aegean Sea. Searches were ongoing on Wednesday morning, stated the Greek coast guard.

Fifteen migrants have died following a collision between their boat and a Greek coast guard patrol boat. Searches are continuing for any additional migrants who may be missing, stated the Greek coast Guard in a press release on Wednesday.

On Tuesday evening, at around 9pm local time, according to the press release, "an inflatable patrol boat from the Hellenic Coast Guard, which was carrying out a scheduled patrol, spotted an inflatable speedboat, with migrants on board."

The migrant boat was "moving without navigation lights towards the eastern coast of Chios." When the coast guard asked them to stop, using lights and sound, the pilot of the migrant boat "did not comply." Instead, "he reversed course and the migrant boat collided with the Greek coast guard on the starboard (right) side," according to the press release.

Reports on the BBC stated that the Greek authorities claimed the speedboat had been making dangerous maneuvers and that a pursuit had been underway prior to the crash.

Dead and missing

The severity of the impact, stated the coast guard, meant that the migrant boat capsized and sank, resulting in all the migrants falling into the sea. A search and rescue operation was immediately launched, including four Greek coast guard patrol boats, a private boat with private divers on board and two air force helicopters. Reports on Reuters and AP suggest that most of the migrants on board were from Afghanistan, with one person reportedly from Morocco.

A total of 25 migrants, seven men, seven women and 11 minors were eventually picked up by the search and rescue team. Those injured were transported to hospitals in the port. Fourteen bodies were pulled from the water dead (11 men and three women), and subsequently, another woman died from her injuries in hospital, bringing the death toll to 15 so far.

Among those injured, reported the Greek state broadcaster ERT, are seven children and a pregnant woman, as well as the two coast guard officers.

Searches continue, stated the Greek coast guard on Wednesday morning. Two members of the coast guard team were also hospitalised after the collision; one male has been discharged, and a woman remains hospitalized for further examinations.

Dangerous maneuvers

The island of Chios lies just a few miles off the coast of Turkey and has been one of the Greek islands that has seen regular arrivals from Turkey over the years.

The nationality of those on board is not yet clear. Witnesses told reporters they believed around 30 to 35 people were on board the boat.

The Greek coast guard regularly reports on "dangerous maneuvers" of migrant boat pilots in Greek waters and deaths as a result of those actions. It is not uncommon that people fall into the sea, or that the boat crashes on rocks or beaches, for example.

Over the years, however, some organizations have accused the Greek authorities of carrying out actions that have brought about some of these deaths. This is a charge the Greek government and coast guard repeatedly deny.

In 2014, 12 migrants were reported to have died after contact with the coast guard off the Greek island of Farmakonisi. Sixteen survivors were brought to the island. The German pro-migrant campaign organization, Pro Asyl, wrote about this case in October 2022, when Greece was brought before the European Court of Justice (ECJ)  to answer to allegations that its actions may have caused the death of these 12 migrants.