The 77-meter Baris cargo, left, is being towed by a Greek Navy Frigate in Greece. (Associated Press)
A smuggling ship carrying more than 700 men, women and children that broke down in gale-force winds while trying to reach Europe was towed on Thursday to the Greek island of Crete.
The 77-meter (250-foot) cargo ship appeared off the coastal town of Ierapetra around sunrise on Thursday, still tethered to the Greek navy frigate that has been towing it for a day and a half.
The ship's engine lost power on Tuesday, 70 nautical miles from Ierapetra. Authorities said its passengers include many refugees from Syria- with a large number of women and children- seeking safety and a better life in Europe.
It in one of the largest single crossings of its kind in recent years. Tens of thousands of people risk the hazardous journey every year, paying smuggling gangs to carry them over in usually unseaworthy craft ranging from dinghies to aging rust-buckets. Most end up in Italy.
According to Amnesty International, more than 2,500 people have drowned or disappeared trying to make the trip this year- about 2 per cent of the estimated total of 150,000 to attempt the journey.
Panayiotis Efstathiou, a senior Greek public health official, said doctors have boarded the vessel to conduct preliminary health checks and polio vaccinations for children from Syria, where the disease has made a comeback.
A pregnant woman who was hemorrhaging was airlifted to a hospital Wednesday, but there were otherwise no reports of serious health problems aboard the Baris. Rumors of armed men aboard the vessel proved unfounded, the coast guard said.
The ship anchored offshore, and the passengers will be ferried in small groups to Ierapetra, where an indoor basketball stadium has been transformed into a reception center.
Efstathiou said the Syrians will receive refugee status and released, while other passengers deemed illegal immigrants will be interned pending deportation.