Tragic Migrant Shipwreck in Calabria: Death Toll Rises to 34

Italy's coast guard has recovered 14 additional bodies following a devastating migrant shipwreck off the Calabria coast, increasing the death toll to 34. The incident occurred east of Calabria as a boat from Turkey caught fire and overturned. Rescue operations continue, with over 60 individuals still missing.

Italy's coast guard recovered 14 more bodies on Friday from a migrant shipwreck off the southern Calabria region which caused at least 34 casualties, a statement said. The shipwreck took place about 200 km (125 miles) east of Calabria, at the tip of Italy's boot, as a boat that had presumably set off from Turkey caught fire and overturned, charity agencies said on Monday.

"Today, 14 bodies were recovered from the coast guard vessels Dattilo and Corsi. A total of 34 bodies were retrieved" since search operations began, the coastguard statement said. After the shipwreck, the agencies said the coast guard had rescued 11 people from the site and brought ashore the body of a woman, but warned over 60 were still missing, meaning more might still be at sea.

According to U.N. data, more than 23,500 migrants have died or gone missing in the central Mediterranean waters since 2014. The coast guard said aircraft provided by Italy and the European Union's border agency Frontex were contributing to the search operations.