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HERAKLION, October 2026 \u2014 A Frontex vessel carried out a Gavdos migrant rescue of 47 people on Tuesday 20 October, after about 70 others were saved south of Crete earlier that day.<\/strong><\/p>\n Rescuers took the 47 safely to the port of Karave on Gavdos, a small island south of Crete, authorities said. The Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC) of the Hellenic Coast Guard<\/a> coordinated the operation.<\/p>\n Together, the two operations brought about 117 people to safety within hours. At the same time, local officials warned of rising arrivals in southern Crete.<\/p>\n Before the Gavdos migrant rescue, crews found about 70 people 52 nautical miles south-southeast of Kaloi Limenes, on Crete\u2019s southern coast, the coast guard said.<\/p>\n Read more: Boat Carrying Migrants Partially Sinks Off Gavdos, 25 Missing<\/p>\n A manned Frontex<\/a> aircraft spotted their boat, and a vessel from the same force then picked them up, the coast guard said. The survivors were taken to the port of Kaloi Limenes.<\/p>\n Coordinators at the JRCC also handled that operation. In both cases, officials did not release the nationalities of the people rescued or any details of their health.<\/p>\n This Gavdos migrant rescue follows a busy month at sea. Greek City Times reported on 12 October that 241 people were rescued in four operations off Ierapetra and Gavdos.<\/p>\n In September, 235 people were rescued in four incidents off southern Crete.<\/p>\n Giorgos Sfakianakis heads the Coast Guard staff union for eastern Crete. He told Heraklion city council on Monday 19 October that 517 migrants had arrived within 24 hours.<\/p>\n Southern Crete had recorded at least 11 arrivals in the days before the meeting, Sfakianakis said. Of those, six were south of Heraklion and five at Ierapetra.<\/p>\n Sfakianakis warned that more than one million migrants are waiting on the Libyan coast to set off for Crete. Greek City Times could not independently verify that figure.<\/p>\n The council met to discuss a Ministry of Migration and Asylum<\/a> decision to open a reception facility for refugees and migrants at Athanatoi, near Heraklion.<\/p>\n Source: AMNA<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\nGavdos and Kaloi Limenes operations<\/h3>\n
Pressure on Heraklion<\/h3>\n