Greek coastguard launch desperate search for DOZENS of migrants feared to have drowned

Greek coastguards have launched a desperate search for dozens of migrants feared to have drowned in the Mediterranean after a sailboat crashed on rocks during a storm.

Authorities said that the boat was carrying up to 100 migrants when it sank in high winds of up to 45mph off the village port of Diakofti late last night.

Coastguard vessels, private boats and a rescue helicopter are involved in the search for migrants off the coast of the island of Kythira, 140 miles south of Athens.

Their search is along a route used by smugglers heading from Turkey to Italy. 

They lowered ropes to help migrants climb up cliffs on the seafront.

So far, their efforts saw 30 people rescued by early this morning, according to officials, who gave no other details on the missing.

A school in the area was opened to provide shelter for those pulled from the cliffs.

Navy divers are also expected to arrive to help with the search effort today. 

Authorities said that the boat was carrying up to 100 migrants when it hit rocks off the village port of Diakofti and sank in high winds of up to 45mph late last night. Pictured: Rescuers save a migrant as they search for survivors after the boat sank 

The coastguard did not have additional information on possible casualties or on the nationality of the migrants. Coastguard vessels, private boats and a rescue helicopter are involved in the search for migrants off the coast of the island of Kythira, 140 miles south of Athens. Pictured: The large-scale rescue operation 

A resident of the island, Martha Stathaki, said: ‘We could see the boat smashing against the rocks and people climbing up those rocks to try and save themselves. It was an unbelievable sight. 

‘All the residents here went down to the harbor to try and help.’

Kythira is 400 kilometers (250 miles) west of Turkey and on a route often used by smugglers to bypass Greece and head directly to Italy. 

However, some smugglers have changed routes in recent months to avoid heavily patrolled waters around Greek islands near the Turkish coastline.  

By early this morning, 30 people were rescued, according to officials, who gave no other details on the missing. Pictured: Migrants at the bottom of a cliff after their boat sank and rescuers work to reach them

Authorities and local residents save a migrant during a large-scale rescue operation on the island of Kythira, pictured

Kythira is an island lying opposite the southeastern tip of the Peloponnese peninsula.

Greece was the frontline of Europe’s migration crisis in 2015 and 2016, when a million refugees fleeing war and poverty from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan arrived, mainly via Turkey.

The number of migrant arrivals has fallen sharply since, but attempts to enter the country by sea through its islands continue.