Survivors tell grim tale of southern Greek migrant shipwreck

By THANASSIS STAVRAKIS and SRDJAN NEDELJKOVIC
Associated Press

KYTHIRA, Greece (AP) — Survivors from a migrant boat that hit rocks and smashed to pieces off a southern Greek island say the omens for their journey were bad from the offset in Turkey. Strong winds lashed the Aegean Sea, and the overloaded sailboat had about 95 people tightly crammed below deck. By late Wednesday, the third night at sea, the captain had lost his bearings. Instead of safely rounding Kythira, the pleasure yacht turned human freighter was swept into a rocky inlet surrounded by forbidding cliffs. The survivors managed to cling to the rocks. Nearby villagers pulled them to safety with ropes. At first light, at least four bodies bobbed among the flotsam from the shipwreck.