ATHENS (Reuters) – Three migrants have died and more than 20 are missing after a second boat sank off the coast of Greece in days, the coast guard said on Tuesday.
The two women and a man who drowned are believed to have been among a group of 41 people whose dinghy sank after hitting a reef near the island of LesbosA Coast Guard spokeswoman told AFP.
Sixteen people have been rescued so far in an ongoing search by land, sea and air which is being hampered by high winds, she added.
On Sunday, four children and a woman died when a boat carrying another group from neighboring Turkey sank off the Greek island of Leros.
The coast guard managed to rescue 41 people, including six children and two adults.
The number of migrants in need of rescue has risen in recent weeks as more people try to reach Greece from Turkish shores on shoddy and overcrowded ships despite rough winter seas.
In December, a two-month-old baby died in a shipwreck off Lesvos.
Some 2,246 people fleeing wars and poverty are known to have lost their lives in the East Mediterranean since 2014, according to statistics from the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
The two women and a man who drowned are believed to have been among a group of 41 people whose dinghy sank after hitting a reef near the island of LesbosA Coast Guard spokeswoman told AFP.
Sixteen people have been rescued so far in an ongoing search by land, sea and air which is being hampered by high winds, she added.
On Sunday, four children and a woman died when a boat carrying another group from neighboring Turkey sank off the Greek island of Leros.
The coast guard managed to rescue 41 people, including six children and two adults.
The number of migrants in need of rescue has risen in recent weeks as more people try to reach Greece from Turkish shores on shoddy and overcrowded ships despite rough winter seas.
In December, a two-month-old baby died in a shipwreck off Lesvos.
Some 2,246 people fleeing wars and poverty are known to have lost their lives in the East Mediterranean since 2014, according to statistics from the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
