09/10: 30 travellers rescued to Italy

10.10.2017 / 10:22 / Central Mediterranean Sea

Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 9th of October 2017

Case name: 2017_10_09-CM118
Situation: 30 travellers on their way from Libya, rescued to Italy – probably by Aquarius
Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded
Place of Incident: Central Mediterranean Sea

Summary of the Cases: On Monday the 9th of October 2017 at 1.27am, the Alarm Phone shift team was alerted to a boat carrying 30 travellers, by one of the traveller’s relatives, forwarding us the satellite phone number of the boat. We were not able to reach the travellers, but at 1.48am we received a direct call from them. They informed us that there were 15 children on board, and that they had left at 10.20pm the previous night. They also sent us their position, and told us that they had already contacted the Italian coast guard. We stayed in close contact with the traveller for the following hours, allowing us to receive their updated position, and recharge the credit on their satellite phone when it went down. After 5.45am we were no longer able to reach the travellers. At 9.10am the relative of the traveller called us, and informed us that the travellers had been rescued. In a tweet by SOS Mediteranee we learned that the search and rescue vessel Aquarius was involved in rescuing a boat, which description fitted our case.

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