09/03: 11 travellers intercepted by Turkey, 18 people rescued to Leros

10.03.2019 / 11:37 / Aegean Sea

Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 9th of March 2019

Case name: 2019_03_09-AEG494
Situation: 11 travellers intercepted by Turkey, 18 people rescued to Leros
Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded
Place of Incident: Aegean Sea

Summary of the Cases:

On Saturday, 9th of March, we were alerted to two boats in distress. One group of 11 travellers was eventually intercepted by the Turkish Coast Guard, one group of 18 people safely arrived at Farmakonisi and was then transferred to Leros.

Case 1: At 5:01am CET we were alerted to a boat in Turkish waters between Farmakonisi and Kalymnos island, carrying 11 people, among them 3 kids. We were informed that the boat had problems with the engine. At 5:54am we managed to reach one phone. The travellers asked for assistance. A contact person sent us a position further south towards Kalymnos. At 5:58am we called JRCC Piraeus and passed all information, including the position close to Kalymnos. That turned out to be a wrong position, as the travellers sent us a new position at 6:16am that was closer to Farmakonisi, but still in Turkish waters. The contact person still was sure that the positions came from the same boat. At 7:08am we tried to clarify with JRCC Piraeus. They confirmed to be in contact with the travellers and that they were headed towards Farmakonisi. At 7:22am a contact person that was in contact with the travellers confirmed that they had been intercepted by the Turkish Coast Guard. The contact person confirmed that the intercepted were a group of 11 people, among them 3 children.

Case 2: At 7:20pm CET we were alerted to a boat north of Farmakonisi, carrying around 17 travellers. We couldn’t establish a connection to the travellers. At 7:33pm we called the Greek Coast Guard and passed the information. We also sent an email to the respective authorities to document the alert. At 9:21pm a contact person confirmed that the people had reached Farmakonisi safely. At 10:49pm the authorities confirmed the rescue of 18 people close to Farmakonisi. The next day at 12am the contact person confirmed that the travellers had been transferred to Leros.

Credibility:

Border police patrols
While the exact location of patrols is of course constantly changing, this line indicates the approximate boundary routinely patrolled by border guards’ naval assets. In the open sea, it usually correspond to the outer extent of the contiguous zone, the area in which “State may exercise the control necessary to prevent infringement of its customs, fiscal, immigration or sanitary laws” (UNCLOS, art. 33). Data source: interviews with border police officials.
Coastal radars
Approximate radar beam range covered by coastal radars operating in the frame of national marine traffic monitoring systems. The actual beam depends from several different parameters (including the type of object to be detected). Data source: Finmeccanica.
Exclusive Economic Zone
Maritime area beyond and adjacent to the territorial sea in which the coastal state exercises sovereign rights for the purposes of exploring and exploiting, conserving and managing the natural resources, whether living or non-living, the seabed and its subsoil and the superjacent waters. Its breadth is 200 nautical miles from the straight baselines from which the territorial sea is measured (UNCLOS, Arts. 55, 56 and 57). Data source: Juan Luis Suárez de Vivero, Atlas of the European Seas and Oceans
Frontex operations
Frontex has, in the past few years, carried out several sea operations at the maritime borders of the EU. The blue shapes indicate the approximate extend of these operations. Data source: Migreurop Altas.
Mobile phone coverage
Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) network coverage. Data source: Collins Mobile Coverage.
Oil and gas platforms
Oil and gas platforms in the Mediterranean. Data source:
Search and Rescue Zone
An area of defined dimensions within which a given state is has the responsibility to co-ordinate Search and Rescue operations, i.e. the search for, and provision of aid to, persons, ships or other craft which are, or are feared to be, in distress or imminent danger. Data source: IMO availability of search and rescue (SAR) services - SAR.8/Circ.3, 17 June 2011.
Territorial Waters
A belt of sea (usually extending up to 12 nautical miles) upon which the sovereignty of a coastal State extends (UNCLOS, Art. 2). Data source: Juan Luis Suárez de Vivero, Atlas of the European Seas and Oceans