Ayten Bicer had her daughter by the hand when the sea tore her away.
It was Sunday, August 30, off Kyrenia, in northern Cyprus. The ferry on which 267 people were traveling to Taşucu, Turkey, capsized in bad weather, shortly after leaving port. A suitcase fell on 12-year-old Miray, separating her from her mother. Ayten managed to grab her foot, but the shoe was covered in spilled engine oil. “It was slippery everywhere, like oil. She slipped from my hand”, she tearfully told the DHA news agency. Miray’s 6-year-old brother, Mehmet Asaf, also disappeared, and both remain missing.
The ferry began having problems just a few minutes after setting sail and ended up sinking at a depth of about 514 meters. Of the 267 people on board, 241 were rescued alive, while eight died and 20 remained missing.
Witnesses say that several passengers asked the crew to turn back because of the storm and that the response was to continue. Authorities have already detained nine people linked to the operation of the vessel, while investigating the causes of the sinking. The vessel had a valid seaworthiness certificate.
How much of this could have been avoided?