Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 24th of December 2021

Case name: 2021_12_24-Eastern Med-849Situation: 30 travelers rescued by Turkish police near Foca. Status of WTM Investigation: ConcludedPlace of Incident: Eastern Med

Summary of the Case:In the afternoon of the 24th of December we were informed about a boat 88 people that was about to sink near the Greek island of Paros. The people reported that they were already in the water. At 17:33 CET we informed the Hellenic Coast Guard and asked for rescue. They informed us that a rescue operation was under way. Also the Blue Star Ferry of the Attica Ferry company changed their course and went to the distress location – in total, nine boats were reported to be involved in the rescue operation. People had to be rescued out of the water. At around 23:00 CET,  58 people were rescued, while 6 dead bodies had been found. During 25 December, the death toll rose to 16. Again in this case, many relatives reached out to us, asking if their loved ones are among the survivors. Amongst the survivors three were arrested, accused and are now being charged with causing an accident at sea, intentional manslaughter and membership in a criminal organization – the charges are insane, they face 16 times life sentence. The accusations are in conflict with survivors’ testimonies, according to whom there was a sudden engine failure which caused panic and finally let the boat to capsize. Here is our twitter threat and press release about the shipwreck.