Crete: 113 Migrants South of Heraklion, 61 on Gavdos

A new wave of migrant arrivals was recorded along Crete’s south coast within the past twenty-four hours. On the morning of Thursday, August 13, 113 people, including one woman, were spotted south of Heraklion and were being transferred to Kali Limenes. This is the largest single group recorded in the area during the day. Coast Guard authorities were on heightened alert, as traffic south of Heraklion is described as intense. The operations are carried out by the Coast Guard with the assistance of cooperating services.

Earlier, during the night from Wednesday to Thursday, two dinghies carrying around 87 migrants were spotted. The dinghies were located roughly 21 nautical miles south and southeast of Kali Limenes. The 87 are expected to eventually be transferred to a reception facility in Rethymno. Distributing arrivals across more prefectures is applied when Heraklion’s facilities reach their limits. The registration process follows disembarkation and an initial medical assessment.

A third incident occurred in the early hours of Thursday on Gavdos. A new arrival of 61 people was recorded at the port of Karave, with the rescue carried out by the Coast Guard. The 61 were housed at the island’s port and were expected to depart at midday for Paleochora. Their final destination is the temporary reception facility in Agia, Chania. Gavdos, with a minimal permanent population and limited infrastructure, has repeatedly faced such incidents.

At the old cold-storage building at Heraklion port, which functions as a temporary reception site, 286 people were present on Thursday. About 100 of them were expected to depart within the next few hours. The facility has repeatedly been described as unsuitable for the long-term housing of large numbers of people. The issue of replacing it is linked to the new facility at Athanatoi. The relevant procedures are underway.

On August 12 alone, five incidents were recorded in the wider area. In total, over the past two days, 286 people were recorded on the south coast. The frequency and scale of arrivals have increased significantly compared with previous weeks. The route from North Africa to Crete is longer and more dangerous than that of the eastern Aegean. The weather conditions of these days, with strong northerly winds, further increase the risk.

The pressure on services and local authorities has become the dominant issue in southern Crete. Mayors in the area have repeatedly called for reinforcement of staff and infrastructure. The issue of reception facilities remains open, with residents of Athanatoi having repeatedly blocked the road. The allocation of warehouses for a reception facility had sparked intense reactions. The situation remains fluid.

Creta Today will continue to monitor arrivals and how they are managed. Initial figures announced are estimates and are finalised after official counting during disembarkation. More from Heraklion on the Heraklion page. See also 268 people in six incidents in Ierapetra. Operations continue.