29/09: Four people drifting in the Straight of Gibraltar

30.09.2021 / 16:55 / Western Mediterranean

Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – September 29th 2021

Case name: 2021_09_29-WM737

Situation: Four men departed Al Hoceima, ran out of fuel, likely rescued to Spain

Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded

Place of Incident: Western Mediterranean

Summary of Case: In the afternoon of September 29th Alarm Phone was called by a relative who alerted us to four men who had departed Al Hoceima on a zodiac and, according to the caller, were drifting in the Straight of Gibraltar, run out of fuel. The relative provided a phone number of the people in distress but we were unable to connect to it. We forwarded the alert to authorities at 15.17 CEST. We tried to reach the people in distress throughout the remainder of the day and night, but remained unsuccessful. By 22.29 CEST September 30th authorities still could not provide any information regarding the four people in distress. This was still the case at 12.50 CEST the following day. Still, at 22.23 CEST October 2nd not the relative, or authorities had any news of the four missing men. In the evening of October 4th the relative who had first alerted us to the case informed us they believe the group had been found a rescued to Spain.

Last update: 21:18 May 01, 2022

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