Sinking of F174
Coordinates: 36°25′31″N 14°54′34″E / 36.42528°N 14.90944°E
The sinking of the ship F174 was at the time the worst maritime disaster in the Mediterranean Sea since World War II. It has since been surpassed by several other migrant shipwrecks. The disaster is known in Italy as the Strage di Natale (Christmas massacre) or Portopalo massacre.
An old, severely overloaded wooden ship transporting illegal immigrants from India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan to Italy sank on the night of December 25–26, 1996 19 nautical miles, (22 miles; 35 km) from Portopalo di Capo Passero in Sicily, Italy under questionable circumstances, and came to rest under 108 metres (354 ft) of water. The number of deaths remains unknown, but at least 283 men, women and children perished.
The fishermen of Portopalo became aware of the disaster when they began to recover human remains and other evidence in their nets. However, they and practically all of the other residents of Portopalo failed to report it to the authorities, fearing that government action would interfere with their livelihood.La Repubblica reporter Giovanni Maria Bellu finally broke the story, leading to much soul searching in Italy over the indifference to the fate of illegal immigrants.
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