Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 23rd of August 2018
Case name: 2018_08_23-AEG416
Situation: Alarm Phone informed of 22 people stranded on Nera island and asked for information about a missing boat
Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded
Place of Incident: Aegean Sea

Summary of the Case: On Thursday the 23rd of August at 4.45am, the Alarm Phone shift team was alerted to a group of 22 people, including 6 women and 7 children, who were trapped on the island of Nera, close to Agathonisi island. At 4:55am we informed the Greek coast guard and at 5:56am we received confirmation that everyone had been safely rescued and all were in a healthy condition.

At 5:10am we were contacted for another case and asked for information about a missing boat carrying 33 people. We called the Greek coast guard at 5:15am, provided them with the little information which we had, and they told us they would investigate the case to try and prepare a rescue operation.
At 5:46am the Greek coast guard infomed us (in response to our earlier email to them) that the boat appeared to be in Turkish water and we should inform the Turkish coast guard, however at 6:10am the Greek coast guard told us that they would investigate with a helipcopter and boat because it appeared that they were uncertain as to whether the boat was definitely in Turkish waters or not, but they again instructed us to inform the Turkish coast guard.

We then tried calling 5 different Turkish coast guard numbers but only reached answering machines. At 6:32am we recieved a return call from the Turkish coast guard and we gave them the information we had.

Over the next few hours we were in regular contact with the Greek coast guard, but unable to provide them with new information as the number on the boat remained unreachable.

We spoke with the Turkish coast guard at 11:25am, who informed us that despite having searched for the boat, they had not found it and also had no news about a boat with 33 people.

At 1:13pm we recieved confirmation from a contact person that the boat had arrived safely on Lesvos island.