What we know about migrant 11-year-old shipwreck survivor found floating alone in the Mediterranean

Shipwreck (Image via Pexels/Nadine Biezmienova)
Shipwreck (Image via Pexels/Nadine Biezmienova)

After a shipwreck, it becomes extremely difficult for one to survive, but an 11-year-old girl did so off the Italian coast. After a boat containing several refugees sank, the girl was found three days later. The Italian media is calling the girl Yasmine who is from Sierra Leone.

According to CNN, Yasmine was found on Wednesday, December 11, morning wearing a life jacket while clinging to a tube by the crew of Trotamar IIrescue vessel. The German NGO Compass Collective runs the rescue vessel.

The 11-year-old told the rescuers of the rescue charity German NGO Compass Collective that the boat had about 45 people on board and left Sfax in Tunisia last weekend. Her younger brother was also traveling along with her.

Matthias Wiedenlübbert, the skipper of Trotamar III, revealed that a rescue boat began patrolling the sea after finding debris from the vessel carrying the migrants. The rescuers heard Yasmine crying in the dark on early Wednesday morning even in the noise of a running engine.

"It was an incredible coincidence that we heard the child’s voice even though the engine was running."
"And of course we looked for other survivors. But after the day-long storm with over 23 knots and 2.5-meter-high waves, it was hopeless," Wiedenlübbert added.

While the rescue operation had begun much earlier after the shipwreck, a storm in Lampedusa halted their operations.

Soon after being rescued, Yasmine was rushed to a hospital in Lampedusa where she received treatment for hypothermia. As per the Red Cross, she was later taken to a migrant holding center.

The girl also said that two other people who had boarded the vessel survived the shipwreck. She revealed that when the boat overturned in the storm, the two managed to live but disappeared a few hours before she was rescued.

Recent shipwreck sparks debates about migrants' safety

Following the devastating shipwreck, people have begun to discuss how risky the route to Europe across the Mediterranean is for migrants. A crew member named Katja Tempel mentioned the need for a safe corridor for refugees and for Europe to become open to welcoming people.

"Even during storms, people are forced to use risky escape routes across the Mediterranean. We need safe passage for refugees and an open Europe that welcomes people and gives them easy access to the asylum system. Drowning in the Mediterranean is not an option."

According to the government's statistics, over 64,000 people were rescued trying to enter Italy through the Central Mediterranean between January 1 and December 11. The number of unaccompanied minors among the migrants is also concerning.

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Edited by Tanisha Aggarwal