Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 16th of August 2017

Case name: 2017_08_16-WM152
Situation: 34 travellers rescued to Spain after being spotted by rescue helicopter
Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded
Place of Incident: Western Mediterranean

Summary of the Cases: On Wednesday the 16th of August at 1.04pm the Alarm Phone was alerted by a contact person to a boat carrying 34 travellers, amongst them five women. The travellers had left from Tangier between 3am and 4am, and the contact person informed us that the boat was now taking water in. Although the contact person claimed to still be in contact with the travellers, we did not manage to reach them on the number he had given us. However, the contact person forwarded their position via WhatsApp, showing that the travellers were very far west of the Strait of Gibraltar. At 1.40pm we decided to call the Spanish search and rescue organisation Salvamento Maritimo (SM) and pass on the information that we had. We stayed in contact with the contact person, who could continuously reach the travellers and give us updates.
He told us that the position was not accurate anymore, so the only indication of their whereabout was their description, stating that they could see mountains ahead, and that there was a white and a blue vessel close by. At 2.12pm the contact person informed us that he has talked to SM. They had told him that the travellers were in Spanish waters, and that their rescue boat was close to the travellers.
At 3.38pm we managed to reach the travellers, and even though it was impossible to understand anything being said, we could hear a helicopter very close by. We therefore tried to urge the travellers to stay calm once rescue approached. We immediately called SM to make sure that they had spotted the travellers, which they confirmed that they had. After this, it was no longer possible to reach the travellers, but at 5.11pm the contact person confirmed to us that the travellers had been rescued and brought to Spain.