Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 26th of june 2020
Case name: 2020_06_24-CM256
Situation: 95 travellers tried to reach Europe ; 1 women gave birth, 6 people drowned before so called Libyan Coast Guard intercepted them
Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded
Place of Incident: Central Mediterranean Sea

Our shiftteam was called the 26th of June by a group of travellers in distress in the central Mediterranean sea. A french speaking person explained that they had left from Al Khums in Libya Wednesday the 24th of June at 22:30. They were 95 people, 20 woman and 8 children. The travelers sent a GPS position which was in international waters and Libyan search and rescue zone. We informed therefore all competent authorities. The people on the boat said that their boat has severe damages and that they could not navigate any further. They were at risk of drowning, and urgently asking for any kind of help. We called MRCC Rome. They confirmed having received our e-mail but gave no further information before they hang up on us. Then we tried to reach the MRCC in Libya, but no number was working. We saw that the boat was within the area patrolled by EU warships of operation IRINI. The Italian warship BERGAMINI appeared to be the closest. We wrote mails and called the IRINI Office, and also spread social media messages asking Europe to organise a rescue operation for the travellers in distress immediately and to bring them to safety in Europe. In the following hours, we tried to reach the boat every hour without success. We also called MRCC Rome several times without receiving any information about ongoing rescue missions. Later we managed to reach the so-called Libyan coastguard, who said they had launched a rescue operation from Misrata. We were never able to establish contact with the people on board anymore. Later in the evening we learned through social media that a boat which seemed to be the one we were in contact with, had been intercepted by the so-called Libyan coastguard. The rescue ship Mare Jonio was very near the position and offered the so-called Libyan coastguard to assist with the rescue and to transfer the people onto their boat, as they were better equiped with medical crew. However, the so-called Libyan coastguard refused any help. Later we learned that
one of the travellers had given birth to a baby whilst they were at sea. We also learned that because of the delay in rescue six people had lost their lives.