ROME (AP) - Italian navy ships on Thursday located what is believed to be the fishing boat that capsized April 18 with an estimated 800 migrants aboard, a tragedy that spurred Italy and Europe into a new round of soul-searching over how to cope with the record waves of migrants coming ashore from Libya.
Using sonar and a submarine, the navy said Thursday it had located a blue, 82-foot vessel matching the description of the doomed boat about 85 miles northeast of the Libyan coast. It was resting on the seabed at a depth of around 1,230 feet, a statement said.
A navy official said the boat could be raised at such depths, but any decision to do so rested with Sicilian prosecutors who are conducting the criminal investigation into the deaths and requested the navy try to locate the wreck.
Survivors reported up to 800 people were locked into two levels of the hold by the smugglers. The boat capsized when its captain mistakenly rammed it into the freighter that had come to its rescue. It was further destabilized when the migrants on deck then rushed to one side hoping to get off first.
The capsizing prompted renewed calls for Europe to help Italy shoulder the burden of rescuing and caring for migrants, and to find new ways to prevent the migrants from setting off in the first place. At an EU summit in the days that followed, EU leaders pledged new funding and resources to beef up its border patrol mission and diplomatic initiatives gained steam to target the traffickers.