Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis called Michalis Protopsaltis, a resident of Kythira and a volunteer whose heroic efforts made a decisive contribution to saving 80 people from an immigrant shipwreck on the island.

Mr. Mitsotakis congratulated and thanked Mr. Protopsaltis. He also stressed that the Greeks will continue to save human lives threatened by networks of unscrupulous human traffickers.

“How We Saved Immigrants”

Mr. Protopsaltis shared with ERT the shocking moments he experienced during the night when a boat carrying about 95 migrants ran aground on the rocks in the Diakofti area.

It was a resident of Kitira, at the insistence of his nephew, who brought a construction crane to the site of the tragic incident, which helped in the speedy rise of the wrecked people who were clinging to the steep rocks with difficulty.

“It was unorthodox, but it saved a lot of lives. At one point, 90 people were dumped on the rocks. We did it and got eighty. If we had delayed a little longer, because the waves were too big, more would have been lost,” Mr. Protopsaltis said.

“We lowered the sack and thus saved them. The authorities and inhabitants of the island saved the whole world. Everyone should know this. 80 people have been saved,” he added. “I saw how people got lost, fell off a cliff and drowned,” said an eyewitness, describing the desperate efforts of rescuers.