01/10: Alarm Phone in contact with 30 travellers in distress north of Rhodes island, rescued to Turkey

02.10.2017 / 09:23 / Aegean Sea

Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 29th of September 2017

Case name: 2017_10_01-AEG308
Situation: Alarm Phone in contact with 30 travellers in distress north of Rhodes island, rescued to Turkey
Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded
Place of Incident: Aegean Sea

Summary of the Case: On Friday the 1st of October 2017, at 6.20am, a contact person provided the Alarm Phone with a phone number and GPS position of 30 travellers in distress in the Aegean Sea, north of the Greek island of Rhodes, but still in Turkish territorial waters. We directly called the travellers at 6.30am and learned that their boat was damaged and leaking. Afterwards, the phone call broke down. At 6.35am, we called the Turkish coast guard and were informed that they were already aware of the boat and that a rescue vessel was on its way. In another call with the Turkish coast guard, at 7.26am, we were told that the rescue vessel had found the travellers’ boat. 30 minutes later, the coast guard confirmed to us that all travellers had been rescued and safely brought to the Turkish mainland, where they apparently escaped. Afterwards, we tried to call the travellers again for several hours, but did not reach them anymore.

Last update: 11:19 Oct 29, 2017

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