Italian coast guard in massive rescue operation of at least 1,000 boat migrants travelling from North Africa

Migrants wait to disembark from a tug boat after being rescued in the Pozzallo harbor, Sicily, Italy

Better weather since last week has encouraged migrants to make the perilous journey from North Africa

Italy's coast guard went to the rescue of at least 1,000 migrants in difficulty in the sea between Europe and North Africa on Sunday, the third operation of its kind in as many days.

The coast guard said it had plucked more than 130 people from two rubber boats about 110 miles south of the island of Lampedusa so far, and was working to save eight more vessels.
"We are certainly at more than 1,000 migrants" involved in Sunday's rescue operation, a spokesman for the coast guard in Rome told Reuters.
Better weather since last week has encouraged migrants to make the perilous journey from North Africa, where a breakdown of order in Libya has made it almost impossible to police the traffickers who pack people onto rickety boats.
More than 300 people died last week trying to make the crossing, which claimed 3,500 lives last year even before Italy closed its Mare Nostrum search and rescue mission in December.
The coast guard ship Fiorillo and several cutters were sent to the latest rescue, along with four merchant ships and two tug boats which were diverted to join the operation. One navy ship, two police patrol ships and a Maltese vessel had also been mobilised, the coast guard spokesman said.

Original post found here: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/italian-coast-guard-in-massive-rescue-operation-of-at-least-1000-boat-migrants-travelling-from-north-africa-10047607.html

At least 8 dead after plane crashes into Taiwan river

 

TAIPEI, Taiwan –  At least eight people were killed after a Taiwanese commercial flight with 58 people on board clipped a bridge shortly after takeoff and crashed into a river in the island's capital of Taipei on Wednesday morning.

Taiwan's Central News Agency said at least 10 people were being taking to safety after the incident but gave no immediate information about the other passengers and crew aboard the TransAsia Airways flight.
Taiwanese media posted pictures of the plane in the water several dozen yards from the shore in the Keelung River.
CNA said the flight from Taipei to the outlying island of Kinmen lost contact with flight controllers at 10:55 a.m. (9:55 p.m. ET Tuesday) and the fuselage landed in the Keelung River near the city's downtown Sungshan airport.
The plane was identified as a French-made twin-engine turboprop ATR 72 with a two-pilot air crew.
The plane's fuselage was seen half-submerged in the shallow river, with passengers and rescuers standing on the hull and swimming in the water.
The accident comes just months after a TransAsia ATR-72 crashed while attempting to land on the island of Penghu off Taiwan's coast, killing 48 people and injuring another 10. Stormy weather and low visibility were suspected as factors in that crash last July.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 
Original post found here: www.foxnews.com/world/2015/02/04/taiwan-plane-crash/