Greek coast guard patrol boats and helicopters are conducting extensive search operations in the Aegean Sea for potential missing individuals following a devastating overnight collision between a patrol vessel and a migrant speedboat that has claimed at least fifteen lives.
Search Continues Following Tragic Incident
The search mission, involving multiple patrol vessels and aerial support, is focused on waters off the eastern Aegean island of Chios where the fatal collision occurred late on Tuesday night. Authorities have confirmed that twenty-four migrants, including eleven children, sustained injuries and have been hospitalised on Chios. Two coast guard officers were also injured during the incident, with one requiring ongoing hospital treatment on Wednesday.
Recovery Efforts and Casualty Details
Rescue teams recovered the bodies of eleven men and three women from the sea shortly after the collision, while one woman later succumbed to her injuries in hospital. The exact number of individuals aboard the migrant speedboat remains unclear, complicating search and recovery efforts. Divers joined four patrol boats and two helicopters in the initial overnight search, with operations continuing into Wednesday morning with enhanced resources.
Official Account of the Collision
According to an official coast guard statement released on Wednesday, one of their patrol vessels encountered the speedboat making its way toward Chios without navigation lights illuminated late on Tuesday. The statement indicates that despite sound and visual signals from the patrol crew instructing the vessel to stop, the speedboat changed direction and collided with the patrol boat, subsequently capsizing.
Photographic evidence released by the coast guard shows visible abrasion damage on the right side of the patrol vessel. The official account of events has not yet been independently verified by external sources.
Hospital Response and Medical Impact
Michalis Giannakos, head of Greece's public hospital workers' union, reported that medical staff at Chios hospital were placed on high alert overnight to manage the sudden influx of casualties. Speaking on Greece's Open TV channel, Giannakos confirmed that several of the injured migrants required surgical intervention following the traumatic incident.
Broader Migration Context
Greece continues to serve as a primary entry point into the European Union for individuals fleeing conflict, persecution, and economic hardship across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. Such fatal accidents during crossing attempts remain tragically common in the region.
Many migrants undertake the short but notoriously dangerous crossing from the Turkish coast to nearby Greek islands in the eastern Aegean, often travelling in overcrowded and unseaworthy inflatable dinghies. Others utilise high-speed vessels operated by smuggling networks who typically deposit passengers on islands before returning to Turkish waters.
Changing Migration Dynamics
Increased maritime patrols and persistent allegations of pushback operations—summary deportations conducted without proper asylum application procedures—by Greek authorities have contributed to a reduction in crossing attempts in recent years. Greece, alongside several other European Union member states, has been implementing stricter migration regulations and border control measures.
The European Union has been overhauling its migration framework since December, introducing measures to streamline deportation processes and increase detention capacities. Migration policy has long been a contentious issue among EU members, with public debate shifting significantly since the surge in asylum-seekers and migrants to Europe approximately a decade ago.
This evolving political landscape has seen far-right parties gain influence across the continent, contributing to hardened EU migration policies. Consequently, the number of asylum-seekers arriving in Europe has decreased from previous record levels, though tragic incidents like the Chios collision underscore the ongoing human cost of irregular migration routes.
