At least 40 migrants have died after suffocating in the hold of a boat in the Mediterranean Sea in the latest people smuggling-related accident.
The Italian Navy said Saturday that more than three hundred migrants were rescued when an overcrowded fishing boat was intercepted off the coast of Libya, reported BBC News. The smuggling boat, heading for Italy, was carrying nearly 400 migrants.
"The dead were found in the hold. It appeared they died from inhaling exhaust fumes," Commander Massimo Tosi said, according to France24.
"It was a scene with strong emotional impact. There were several dead bodies submerged in water, fuel and human excrement ... This is the picture that appeared to our men when they got on board," he said, Xinhua reported.
Italy's Interior Minister Angelino Alfano said the naval rescue team was still counting the survivors, but around 320 migrants had been rescued. He also warned that this accident won't be the last if the international community does not find a solution to the migrant crisis soon.
"Either the international community does something to resolve the Libyan situation or this will not be the last tragedy," said Alfano, according to Reuters.
Saturday's accident is the latest in a series of fatal incidents in the Mediterranean Sea in the European refugee crises.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Friday that an estimated 2,300 migrants have died at sea this year while trying to make the crossing into Europe.
"These latest tragedies underscore the dangers faced by migrants in the Channel of Sicily, now the deadliest route for those fleeing violence, natural disasters and abject poverty," IOM said in a statement, CNN reported.
See below a rescue video, released by Italian navy -Marino Militare.
