01/12: ~60 people in distress on Atlantic route, intercepted by Moroccan marine

02.12.2021 / 20:52 / Atlantic

Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – December 1st 2021

Case name: 2021_12_01-WM796

Situation: Five children, about ten women, about 43 men in distress southwest of Tarfaya, intercepted to Laayoune

Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded

Place of Incident: Atlantic

Summary of Case: In the morning of December 1st Alarm Phone received a distress call of a group of five children, about ten women and about 43 men who had departed Tarfaya in a blue zodiac. At the time of the call the people in distress informed us their enginge was not working and they were struggling against strong winds. We alerted authorities at 11.35 CET. At 13.20 CET the Marine Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) Rabat stated they had launched a search and rescue (SAR) operation. Throughout the day we received several GPS positions from the group of travellers in distress, which we forwarded to authorities. At 20.07 CET MRCC Rabat informed us the Moroccan marine had rescued 62 people from a blue zodiac in the last known location of the distress case and brought them to the port of Laayoune but did not provide further details.

Tweets:

December 1st

13.01 CET

20.23 CET

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