There were moments of tension at
Lampedusa port on Wednesday afternoon as hundreds of migrants
and refugees who had recently disembarked on the island demanded
to be allowed to leave the pier.
Finance police offers made a pre-emptive charge in order to try
to disperse crowds trying to break through the safety barrier.
The new arrivals then sat down without further protest, as
numerous other small boats were lined up waiting to disembark.
As of 5 pm local time there were 6,762 migrants and refugees on
Lampedusa - more than the island's population of around 6,000 -
after an unprecedented wave of arrivals in recent days.
Most of the new arrivals were in the hotspot in Contrada
Imbriacola, with smaller groups in various other parts of the
island including at the pier.
On Wednesday 720 people were transferred off the island by
passenger ferry to Porto Empedocle and 180 on a flight chartered
by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).
A further 750 people were also expected to leave the island
later in the day.
Meanwhile, the migrant sea rescue hotline Alarm Phone said
Wednesday a group of approximately 47 people could be in
distress off Lampedusa.
"We have made contact with a small boat carrying 47 people in
distress just 10 km off Lampedusa," Alarm Phone said.
"At 5 am they told us they were adrift without engine fuel.
Since then we have had no further news. We hope they have been
rescued," it added.
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