The Greek coast guard picked up around 60 people from a wrecked boat off Crete. It was unable to maneuver due to an engine failure. The crews of a Coast Guard boat and a barge spotted the people; they should bring them to a safe harbor in the Plakias region on the south side of the Mediterranean island, as the semi-official Greek news agency ANA-MPA reported today.
For months people have been picked up off Crete or the Greek peninsula Peloponnese. Smugglers try to bring them from the Turkish Aegean coast or from other states in the east of the Mediterranean on this very dangerous route south of Crete to Italy.
According to the Greek coast guard, the long journey often leads to machine damage in the usually old boats. When a boat with dozens of people on board went down in mid-September, at least four people were killed.
