The death toll has already reached 79 shipwreck fishing boat which carried hundreds of migrants, in its open air Pylos. The Ministry of Shipping made public the chronicle of the salvage operation of the shipwrecks.

The events as recorded in the Operations Center of the Ministry of Shipping are as follows:

-Yesterday morning 13/6 around 11:00 the Rome Operations Center informed the Single Coordination Center for Search and Rescue L.S. – EL. AKT. that there is a fishing vessel with a large number of migrants (in international waters southwest of the Peloponnese) according to information received by the Italian authorities following a call from an NGO activist.

-The Coast Guard proceeded with the verification process. Helicopter of L.S. – EL. AKT. took off at around 13:50 from Mytilini bound for the fishing boat.

-At 15:35 the fishing boat was detected by the Coast Guard helicopter sailing with a steady course and speed having a sufficient number of people on its outer decks.

-Immediately after the detection by the helicopter, the ships sailing in the area were informed and they were asked to change their course and to inform the EKSED about the movements and the general condition of the fishing vessel.

-At the same time, a 40-meter ship of the Coast Guard was ordered to sail from Chania, Crete, to the Ionian Sea and the area of ​​the fishing vessel.

-The first contact with the fishing vessel after difficulty was achieved around 14:00.

– The fishing vessel did not request any assistance from the Coast Guard and Greece.

-Second take-off of the helicopter around 18:00, where again it was found that the boat is sailing with a constant course and speed.

– Communication between EKSED and the vessel was achieved via satellite phone around 18:30. The satellite phone user on board the boat, who spoke English, replied that the boat was not in danger, they wanted no help other than food and water, and that they wished to continue on to Italy.

– The EKSED sent a Maltese-flagged vessel which approached the fishing vessel around 18:00, and after the fishing vessel stopped – as requested by the commercial vessel – supplied it with food and water.

-Repeatedly the fishing vessel was asked by the merchant ship if it wanted additional assistance or if it was in danger or if it wanted anything else from Greece. They replied “we want nothing more than to go on to Italy”.

– Then a second boat was found, this time a Greek ship, which was sent to the fishing vessel around 21:00 in order to provide additional food supplies and any other assistance. They received only the water, while the other supplies were thrown into the sea.

– From 15:30 to 21:00 the operations room of the Ministry of Shipping had repeated communication with the fishing vessel via satellite phone. In all of them they consistently repeated that they wished to sail to Italy and did not want any assistance from Greece.

-At 22:40 the Coast Guard vessel from Crete sailed near the fishing vessel. He remained at a distance and discreetly observed it, not finding any problem in its navigation, as it had a steady course and speed.

-This continued until 01:40 on June 14th. At the above time, the person on board the fishing vessel informed the Headquarters Operations Center that the vessel’s engine had malfunctioned and stopped moving.

– The specific event was also confirmed by the Coast Guard’s floating vessel.

-Immediately the LS boat tried to approach the fishing vessel to determine the problem

-At 02:04 am the Governor of the floating vessel of L.S. informed the Operations Center that he saw the fishing vessel take a right then a sharp left bank and then another right bank so great that it resulted in the fishing vessel overturning (Nav. Terminology “capsize”).

-In ten to fifteen minutes later the boat completely sank. A number of passengers on the outer decks fell into the sea.

-Initiation of a broad search-rescue operation.