Tensions rise as refugees continue to flood Italian island

Mar 19, 2011, 14:45 GMT

Some of the migrants rescued during the night of 14 March near the Italian island of Lampedusa by the Italian Navy ship Spica, have their belongings inspected in Lampedusa, Italy, 15 March 2011. According to media reports, over 1,600 migrants landed on Lampedusa overnight. There are also reports stating that dozens of migrants are missing after their boat capsized. EPA/FRANCO LANNINO

Lampedusa, Italy - Pressures continued to mount on the Italian island of Lampedusa Saturday as refugee centres began to buckle under the weight of the inflow of people and residents' continued to protest the refugees' presence.

A further 378 refugees arrived overnight into Saturday, according to Italian media, further stretching already overcrowded facilities. Between Friday and Saturday, 15 boats arrived, carrying refugees predominantly from Tunisia.

A reception centre designed to hold 850 people was currently housing well over 3,000.

'The situation is not fit for humans. We're even lacking water,' volunteers told Italy's RAI broadcaster.

The island has appealed to the national government for the use of a naval vessel to help ease the strain, reported the Ansa news agency, citing military sources. The boat could transport a great number of the refugees to other facilities, island residents hope.

The Italian government was busy trying to find space for asylum seekers on Sicily or mainland Italy. About 200 asylum seekers were to take up residence Saturday in a facility formerly used by US military personnel.

The Mineo facility, near Catania, has space for 7,000. The first 200 moved in on Friday.

Additionally, government officials were going to try anew Saturday to see if there was space to set up a tent city on a former military base in western Lampedusa, in the hopes of relieving pressure on the main facility.

On Friday, the island's residents prevented coast guard ships holding refugees rescued from rickety boats from landing for hours by blocking the piers of the two harbours.

The UN's refugee agency (UNHCR) warned that the situation could escalate if more people flee Libya due to the ongoing conflict there.

In mid-February, shortly after the fall of Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, around 5,600 refugees arrived on Lampedusa within the space of a few days.

The 20 square kilometre island south of Sicily has just 4,500 inhabitants. Just 130 kilometres from Tunisia's coast, it has long been seen as a gateway to Europe.

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