19/07 Alarm Phone alerted to 3 boats off Libya with presumably more than 400 travellers on board; overall 3200 people rescued

20.07.2016 / 13:33 / Central Mediterranean Sea, Libya

Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 19th of July 2016

Case name: 2016_07_19CM71
Situation: Alarm Phone alerted to 3 boats in distress in the Central Mediterranean Sea
Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded
Place of Incident: Central Mediterranean Sea

Summary of the Cases: On Tuesday the 19th of July 2016, the WatchTheMed Alarm Phone was alerted to 3 distress situations in the Central Mediterranean Sea.

In the early hours of the day, Father Mussie Zerai passed on information concerning vessel 1 in distress, carrying about 130 people. While our shift team was initially unable to reach the travellers, we could check their phone credit and saw that they had sufficient credit. At 7.27am we were able to reach them and it was clear that they were anxious and in distress. Following their account, they had already contacted the coastguards. We asked for updated coordinates and agreed to communicate again, about 10 minutes later. Over the following hour, we tried to obtain the exact GPS positions, and they seemed to still be within Libyan waters.

After receiving information via Father Zerai of a second boat, we successful established contact with vessel 2 shortly before 8am. The travellers passed on their GPS position and informed us that another refugee boat was in their vicinity. At 8.07am we learned that they had problems with their engine. At 8.36am we were informed that water was coming into their vessel and they asked for urgent help, even by the Libyan coastguard. We informed MRCC Rome at 8.40am and they took on the case, stating that they would presumably inform the Libyan coastguard. At 8.47am we informed the travellers and asked them to stay as calm as possible. After several further distress calls from vessel 2, the travellers informed us at 9.02am that they were able to see a rescue vessel approaching. After several unsuccessful attempts to reach them, they told us at 10.11am that they could see a helicopter nearby, which was the last contact our shift team had with vessel 2.

When Father Zerai passed on details of a third boat in distress off the coast of Libya, carrying about 150 people, including 70 women and 3 children, we tried to establish contact with vessel 3 at 11.01am but were unable to reach them. However, we were able to upload credit onto their satellite phone at 11.04am. We were never able to contact the travellers directly but passed on the information that we had to MRCC Rome.

While rescue of all three vessels cannot be undoubtedly verified, it seems highly likely that they were rescued and the passengers disembarked in Italy. MRCC Rome later announced that they had rescued 3200 people in 25 SAR operations that day. They had also discovered one fatality on one of the rescued boats.
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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