FORTY-ONE refugees have died in a shipwreck off the Italian island of Lampedusa, survivors told local media today, in the latest loss of life on the perilous Mediterranean migration route.

According to Italian broadcaster RAI and that Ansa news agency, the four survivors were rescued by Maltese-flagged bulk carrier the Rimona in the Straits of Sicily before being transferred to the Italian coastguard, which brought them to Lampedusa.

The island, which lies closer to Africa than the Italian mainland, is a frequent destination for migrant smugglers and has seen its migrant holding centre repeatedly overcrowded with new arrivals this summer.

Italian Red Cross spokeswoman Alessandra Filograno confirmed that four survivors, two men, a woman and an unaccompanied minor, had entered the Lampedusa centre today morning.

The four survivors, reportedly from the Ivory Coast and Guinea, told authorities that 41 people had died in the shipwreck, including three children.

According to Italy’s Interior Ministry, over 93,000 refugees have arrived in the country so far this year, more than twice the 45,000 who arrived during the same period of 2022.

The United Nations has registered more than 17,000 deaths in the Mediterranean since 2014, making it the most dangerous migrant crossing in the world.