It was initially reported that over five hundred people were on board the 20-metre-long fishing boat when it began to have engine trouble less than a quarter-mile from Lampedusa, causing the ship to begin sinking. In an attempt to contact nearby boats, a blanket on the ship was lit on fire. However, this fire grew worse when it ignited some gasoline and began to engulf the boat before it sank.[ To avoid the flames, many people threw themselves into the water or moved away from the fire to the same part of the ship, which then capsized. At least 350 people were initially declared missing.
On 7 October, it was reported that 194 bodies had been recovered, and that the final death toll could rise to between 325 and 363 individuals. A total of 155 people had been rescued. A further 108 bodies were reported retrieved by 9 October, after access was gained to the inside of the boat's hull, resting some 47 meters (154 ft) beneath the surface of the water. On 11 October, it was reported that all bodies had been recovered from the boat, and the confirmed death toll had reached 339. About 50 were believed to be still missing, and searches for further bodies in the area would continue using aircraft and robotic devices. A further 20 bodies had been found by 12 October, bringing the total to 359. The total number of dead was later reported as "more than 360". On 8 November, it was reported that that the migrants had each paid at least $3,000 (£1,866) to the Libyan, Somali and Sudanese trafficking group before making the sea crossing from Libya. Women who were unable to pay were said to have been raped, and men who rebelled were tied up and tortured. The alleged captain of the boat, a 35-year-old Tunisian named as Khaled Bensalam, who was reported to have been deported from Italy in April 2013, was arrested under suspicion of being responsible for the sinking. It was reported that he could be charged with manslaughter. On 8 November, a 34-year-old Somali national, Mouhamud Elmi Muhidin, and a Palestinian man, Attour Abdalmenem, were also arrested under suspicion of having been among the traffickers that organized the voyage. Police indicated that Muhidin was facing a series of charges, including people trafficking, kidnapping, sexual assault, and criminal association with the aim of abetting illicit immigration. The two men were detained by the Italian police after a number of the shipwreck survivors spotted and began attacking them.
