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

Case name: 2017_10_29-WM172
Situation: Alarmphone in contact with 4 travellers, rescued by Spanish rescue organization close to Moroccan coast
Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded
Place of Incident: Western Mediterranean Sea

Summary of the Case: On Sunday the 29th of October 2017, at 6.25am, a contact person informed the Alarm Phone about a boat in distress in the Western Mediterranean Sea with four persons on board, who had started from a beach east of Cap Spartel/Morocco at 3am. He provided us with the travellers phone number and we called them at 6.30am. They told us that they were three men and one child on board and that there were strong winds. They could still see the lights of Tanger and were not in immediate distress. In another call at 7am, we learned that they went further in the direction of Spain and could also see the lights of Tarifa. However, in the next call at 7.35am, they told us that their boat had capsized and that they have fallen into the water. Fortunately, they were able to flip the boat and enter it again, yet they lost all their paddles and were forced to paddle with their bare hands. Thus, they asked us to immediately call the Spanish or even the Moroccan coast guard. At 7.40am, we called the Spanish rescue organization Salvamento Maritimo (S.M.). They were already aware of the boat in distress and told us that they had sent a helicopter and a rescue vessel. At 7.43am, we forwarded this news to the travellers and urged them to stay calm in order to prevent another capsizing. At 7.52am, we also provided S.M. with all our information in written form, via email. In another call with the travellers at 8.13am, the travellers told us that they could see a rescue vessel in the east, but feared not to be seen by its crew. Thus, at 8.15am, we forwarded this information to S.M. They thanked us and confirmed that they had also been in direct contact with the travellers. Afterwards, we observed on vesselfinder.com, that the Spanish rescue vessel Guardamar C Arenal was searching close to the Moroccan coast. In two subsequent calls to the travellers at 9am and 9.30am respectively, we first learned that the helicopter had spotted the boat and second that the rescue vessel was approaching them. At 9.47am, we saw on vesselfinder.com, that the Spanish rescue vessel Guardamar C Arenal had turned and was about to head back north in the direction of Spain. Finally, at 10am, Salvamento Maritimo confirmed to us that they had indeed rescued the 4 travellers in distress and were transferring them to Tarifa/Spain.