New alliance ship SEA-EYE 5 rescues people from distress at sea for the first time

Refugees

SEA-EYE 5 crew rescues 65 people at night and brings them to safety within 36 hours

The crew of the civilian all-weather lifeboat SEA-EYE 5 received a report of an emergency at sea in the operational area off Lampedusa on Tuesday afternoon, 29 October 2024. Half an hour before midnight, the crew found the overcrowded wooden boat adrift in the waves. The engine had failed and the 65 people on board were not wearing life jackets.

The bad weather, the night-time conditions and the waves, which were high for the small boat, required an immediate evacuation. The doctor on board the SEA-EYE 5 was able to certify that everyone was in good medical condition with no serious injuries.

The Italian authorities initially assigned the ship to the distant harbour of Ortona. The captain and the head of mission convinced the Italian coastguard that a sea journey of several days was unacceptable for the survivors for humanitarian reasons. On Thursday night, the Italian authorities finally assigned the SEA-EYE 5 to the much closer harbour of Pozzallo.

On Thursday morning, 31.10.24, the SEA-EYE 5 entered the port of Pozzallo in Sicily, where all the rescued people were able to leave the all-weather lifeboat and go ashore.

Disembarkation

“We are overjoyed and grateful that the first mission of our new ship was carried out so well and safely. Our crew brought the survivors to safety in less than 36 hours. This was an extraordinary achievement by our eight-headed rescue team,†says Gorden Isler, Chairman of Sea-Eye e.V.

“The rescue makes it clear that civilian sea rescue remains indispensable as long as people are drowning while fleeing across the Mediterranean – and Europe is not sending any help. We would like to thank the crew and all supporters who made this mission possible and wish the rescued people all the best for their future journey,†says Vera Kannegießer, Director of United4Rescue e.V.

The SEA-EYE 5 is a former all-weather lifeboat of the German Maritime Search and Rescue Service (DGzRS), which Sea-Eye has been overhauling and technically modernising for its mission in the Mediterranean in recent months. On 23 October, the crew set off from Sicily on the ship’s first rescue mission in the Mediterranean.