12/11: 27 travellers rescued by the Turkish coast guard

13.11.2017 / 18:51 / Aegean Sea

Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 12th of November 2017

Case name: 2017_11_12-AEG317
Situation: 27 travellers rescued by the Turkish coast guard. Turkish coast guard very unwilling to cooperate with us.
Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded
Place of Incident: Aegean Sea

Summary of the Cases: On Sunday the 12th of November 2017, at 3.32am, a contact person alerted the Alarm Phone shift team to a group of 27 travellers in distress on their way to Rhodes, forwarding us their position and phone number. During the time the people were at sea, we continuously tried to reach them, but we never managed. The position from the contact person showed that the travellers were in Turkish waters, so at 3.40am we called the Turkish coast guard. They were not interested in the information about the distress case, and hung up on us. We therefore called the Greek coast guard, who advised us to call the Turkish coast guard in Ankara. However, the coast guard in Ankara did not want to hear about the distress neither, so we sent them an email with all the information to make sure they were aware of the case. At 3.55am we called the Greek coast guard to make them aware of our concern, that the Turkish coast guard refused to respond to the distress case, and they promised to call the Turkish coast guard as well. At 4.35am we called the Greek coast guard again. They told us that they were not involved in the rescue operation, and that we should call the Turkish coast guard, but when we told them about our communication issues with the Turkish coast guard, they agreed that we could call them back to get an update about the case. Between 4.40 and 5.45am we called the Turkish coast guard many times. Most of the times the line was either busy, or the officer hung up straight away. When we finally got through to them, they shouted angrily at us in Turkish. At 6.00am we called the Greek coast guard, who still had no information about the rescue operation, and once again urged us to call the Turkish coast guard to get news. At 7.42am we reached one of the travellers, who informed us that they had been brought back to Turkey by the Turkish coast guard, and that they were all alright.
Last update: 18:40 Nov 29, 2017
Credibility: UP DOWN 0
Layers »
  • 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