Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 19th of January 2019
Case name: 2018_01_19CM147
Situation: Alarm Phone alerted to a boat with 47 travellers leaving from Zuwarah, who were rescued by Sea Watch 3
Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded
Place of Incident: Central Mediterranean Sea

Summary of the Case: On Saturday the 19th of January, the Alarm Phone shift team was alerted to a boat in distress off the coast of Libya. The 47 travellers on board had left from Zuwarah before reaching out to us. After a while, they were able to send us their GPS position so that we were able to localise them. They also informed us that their engine had stopped working and requested urgent assistance, therefore we alerted the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre in Rome without any delay. We also informed the civil reconnaissance aircraft Moonbird and the Sea-Watch 3, the latter patrolling in the vicinity. At that point in time, Sea-Watch 3 was already engaged in a rescue operation, which they had been informed about by their aircraft Moonbird. We later learned that this was the boat which we had been contacted by.

We continued monitoring the open search and rescue operation during which the rescue vessel Sea-Watch 3 got involved with more rescue operations, without taking more people aboard. The vessel was denied a Place of Safety by several countries. After 11 days, the Sea-Watch 3 could safely disembark all 47 survivors in Catania after seven member states of the European Union agreed on their relocation.