ix injured migrant children were airlifted from Chios to Athens and admitted to the Agia Sofia Children’s Hospital following a deadly shipwreck that occurred off the island’s coast. The transfer was deemed necessary after doctors assessed that the minors required specialized medical care not available locally.
The air evacuation was coordinated by EKAV, with a medical aircraft departing from the military airport in Elefsina early in the morning. Five of the children are reported to have sustained serious orthopedic injuries. At the same time, one of the minors is unaccompanied, according to official sources.
At the same time, developments in the judicial investigation are unfolding. At 18:00, a Moroccan national identified by authorities as the alleged smuggler is expected to appear before an investigating magistrate. He faces serious felony charges, including causing a shipwreck with fatal consequences and illegal trafficking of migrants. The suspect denies any involvement and calls for a fair and impartial judicial process.
Meanwhile, emerging evidence has raised troubling questions about the circumstances of the deaths. Preliminary findings suggest that the 15 deceased migrants may not have drowned, but instead died as a result of severe bodily injuries. The official forensic report is still pending, but the information so far has intensified scrutiny of exactly what occurred during the incident.
The tragedy has also brought deeply personal stories to light. Among the victims were members of the same family — a mother and her son — whose relative traveled from the United States to Chios in an attempt to locate them. Identification was carried out using photographic material, while several bodies have already been transferred to Schisto. Four victims remain unidentified.
Health authorities have confirmed that two of the injured migrants treated in Chios remain in critical condition. One is a woman who suffered severe head trauma and lost the fetus she was carrying. The second is a man with extensive abdominal injuries. Both cases underscore the extreme violence of the incident and the severe medical consequences faced by survivors.
As investigations continue, the focus remains on the medical care of the injured, the identification of the victims, and the clarification of the events that led to one of the most tragic migrant shipwrecks in the Aegean this year.
