Little coffins mark tragedy of Italy migrant shipwreck

The coffins of 65 victims of a devastating migrant shipwreck off Italy’s southern coast were laid out Tuesday in a local sports hall, five of them small and white, containing the bodies of the youngest children that died.

Flower bouquets adorned each coffin in the building in Crotone, while a toy blue car had been laid on the smallest, ready for mourners to pay their respects.

Earlier, the coffins had been opened to allow the identification of the dead, with relatives having flown in from countries including Germany and Austria.

One woman let out a scream which shattered the silence of the sports hall.

A German-speaking man told reporters he was the nephew of an Afghan man who survived — but lost his wife and three children aged five, eight and 12, after paying $30,000 for the family to cross. A 14-year-old child survived.

The toll from Sunday’s shipwreck rose to 65 on Tuesday after another body was found, local officials reported.

Fourteen children were among those confirmed to have died when their overcrowded boat shattered in a storm, the interior ministry said.

Another 79 survived, while several more are believed still to be missing.

It was one of the most tragic incidents in the Central Mediterranean, which tens of thousands of migrants and asylum seekers cross each year hoping to find a new life in Europe.

“We go to this beach in summer. All residents will remember this, that there were so many victims, especially these children and young people,” said Daniela Brugnana, 45, who came to pay homage to the victims.