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Hundreds Missing in Libyan Refugee Accident

Tragic

Boat was on its way to Italy.

cheats/2011/06/02/hundreds-missing-in-libyan-refugee-accident/lampedusa-libya-migrants_i3n0yr
A previous boat of refugees from Libya arrived in Lampedusa, Italy, on March 7. (Antonello Nusca / AP Photo)

Another boat carrying refugees ran into trouble on their way to Italy. An overcrowded fishing trawler jammed with 800 people encountered bad weather on its way to the Italian island of Lampedusa. The passengers panicked and began pushing one another as they struggled to reach the lifeboats. The Tunisian coast guard responded to the call, and officials say between 200 and 270 people are missing. More than 30,000 refugees from Tunisian and Libya have crossed to Lampedusa, the closest Italian island to Africa, since last February.

Read it at CNN