Informing humanitarians worldwide 24/7 — a service provided by UN OCHA

Libya + 8 more

Life Support Rescues 47 People in Libyan SAR Zone

This afternoon, around 15:30, EMERGENCY’s search and rescue ship Life Support rescued 47 people from a boat in distress in the international waters of the Libyan SAR zone. The case was reported to EMERGENCY’s vessel shortly before 13:00 via a mayday relay on channel 16 by Sparrow 4, a Frontex aircraft.

“As soon as we received the report of the case of a boat in distress, we proceeded to the indicated coordinates, where we found an overcrowded dinghy with people without life jackets,” comments Life Support Head of Mission, Carlo Maisano. “Our staff immediately initiated rescue operations, evacuating the people from the boat in distress and bringing them safely on board Life Support. The medical staff then began to examine those who needed attention, in particular people with burns from the mixture of seawater and fuel. The authorities have assigned us Livorno as a Place of Safety (POS) for disembarkation. We will arrive on Sunday morning after three-and-a-half days at sea. All of the survivors are vulnerable: they have a long journey behind them and have the right to arrive in a safe port as soon as possible. There is no reason for them to stay at sea any longer after all they have experienced.”

The dinghy in distress, about 6 metres long, was overcrowded and had departed from Zwara, Libya.

Among the 47 rescued people are 39 men, three women and five unaccompanied children. They come from Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Ghana, Libya, Nigeria, South Sudan and Sudan, countries affected by conflict, violence, political instability, climate crisis and poverty.

“Among the rescued people we have treated three women and two men with burns. There are also some cases of joint pain from being stationary and hunched in the same position for a long time, but we have no other medical cases to report,” explains Crescenzo Caiazza, nurse on board Life Support. “Fortunately, during the rescue operation there was no one in critical condition, they had not been at sea for too many hours and their boat held together despite the bad weather conditions. In the coming days of navigation, however, the medical staff will continue to monitor the health conditions of all the shipwrecked people and treat the cases of burns and joint pain.”

After completing the rescue and notifying relevant authorities, Life Support was assigned Livorno as POS by the Italian Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre. Disembarkation is scheduled for Sunday morning.

Currently on its 20th mission, EMERGENCY’s search and rescue ship Life Support is operated by a 28-person crew consisting of sailors, doctors, cultural mediators and rescuers. So far, it has rescued 1,678 people and will continue its efforts to provide humanitarian assistance and save lives along one of the world’s deadliest migration routes.