20/03: Around 110 travellers rescued by Ocean Viking

21.03.2021 / 10:47 / Central Mediterranean Sea

Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 20th March 2021
Case name: 2021_03_20-CM386
Situation: Alarm Phone alerted a rubber boat in distress in the Central Med, all travellers rescued by Ocean Viking
Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded
Place of Incident: Central Mediterranean

Summary of the case: In the morning on Saturday the 20th of March, the Alarm Phone received a direct call from a rubber boat in distress in the Central Mediterranean Sea. The boat was carrying around 110 travellers, including 15 women and six children, who had left from Zawiyah the previous day between 22.00 and 23.00 CET. The travellers also forwarded us their GPS position. At 09.12 CET we sent an email to the so-called Libyan coastguard as well as several rescue NGOs, alerting them to the distress of the travellers. At 10.02 CET we were informed that the civil rescue vessel Ocean Viking would proceed to provide assistance to the boat in distress. Half an hour later, the Ocean Viking commenced evacuation of the travellers and at 12.28 CET they confirmed that all travellers had been brought safely onboard the Ocean Viking.

Last update: 10:51 Jul 31, 2021

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