25.10: Boat capsized close to the Spanish coast, rescued and brought to Motril

26.10.2020 / 15:09 / Western Mediterranean Sea

Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 25nd of October 2020
Case name: 20201025-WM512
Situation: 52 travellers at sea for days, capsizing close to the Spanish coast and finally rescued just in time and brought to Motril
Place of incident: Western Mediterranean

Summary of the case:
In the night of Sunday the 25th of October, we received a call from a relative who informed us about a boat with 52 travellers which had left from west of Al Hoceima the previous day at around 14.00, heading towards Malaga. The relative had last been in contact with the travellers at 17.00 the previous day. We were not able to reach the travellers during the night, despite constantly trying. The next morning at 08.39 we called the Spanish search and rescue organisation Salvamento Maritimo (SM) and gave them the information we had. However, SM insisted that they could not initiate a search and rescue operation without more information. We were in contact with SM several times during the morning, and passed on all information we were able to obtain thorugh the relative. We were increasingly worried about the travellers, as the weather was getting worse and they had already been at sea for a long time. At 13.50 the relative informed us that they had just been in contact with the travellers who were close to the beach of Malaga. The relative further told us that they were in distress as there were high waves. We were not able to reach the travellers ourselves, but at 14.04 we called SM again and passed on this information. They confirmed to us on the phone that they were searching for the travellers close to Malaga. We were able to follow the trajectory of the search and rescue asset of SM on vesselfinder. In the meantime, the relative managed to stay in contact with the travelles, and informed us about their continuous distress. At 16.19 we spotted a helicopter operating in the area as well as the search and rescue vessel. At 16.45 we managed to reach the travellers directly, but due to bad connection the only information we could gather was that they were still at sea but could see the coast. From the relative we learned that the travellers had had direct contact to SM as well, but that SM was having problems localising them. This was confirmed to us by SM. At 18.25 we reached the travellers again. They told us that they were out of fuel and therefore left adrift, and that the waves were high and the wind strong. They estimated that they were 4km from the coast. We passed on this information to SM immediately. At 21.15 we could see on vesselfinder that another search and rescue vessel as well as a helicopter of SM were searching the area. We called SM again at 21.20, and they confirmed that they had spotted a boat matching our description. They expected to arrived with their rescue vessel within 20 minutes. We learned that the boat had capsized shortly before rescue arrived, and that some of the travellers had to be transported to the hospital immediately after being rescued. However, all 52 travellers arrived to Motril and survived the disaster.
Last update: 19:27 Feb 08, 2021
Credibility: UP DOWN 0
Layers »
  • 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

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