Sea-Eye crew prevents serious boat accident at night
76 people rescued from sinking rubber boat
After the SEA-EYE 4 had already rescued 416 people in three rescues, the rescue ship was again notified of a maritime emergency on Wednesday evening, June 16, 2022. The organization Alarm Phone already reported to authorities that the boat was damaged in the first distress call, water was entering and people were calling for help. When the rescue ship reached the scene of the accident, there was hardly any air left in the tubes. With lights, the people tried to draw attention to themselves at night.
“The people were very lucky that the SEA-EYE 4 was less than three hours away at the time of the distress call and that they were still found in time during the night,” says Gorden Isler, chairman of Sea-Eye e. V.
The difficult rescue operation dragged on until midnight. Sea-Eye’s rescue boats brought 76 people onto the SEA-EYE 4.
Many of the people rescued during the night have chemical burns and therefore have to be treated in the SEA-EYE 4’s onboard hospital. This happens when fuel leaks from the rubber boats and mixes with seawater, because it creates a corrosive mixture that severely burns the skin. Those rescued also suffer from hypothermia, dehydration and severe exhaustion.
Many of the people rescued during the night have chemical burns and therefore have to be treated in the SEA-EYE 4’s onboard hospital. This happens when fuel leaks from the rubber boats and mixes with seawater, because it creates a corrosive mixture that severely burns the skin. Those rescued also suffer from hypothermia, dehydration and severe exhaustion.
The SEA-EYE 4 is now in search of a port of safety with 492 rescued people.
“The civilian aid organizations AlarmPhone and Sea-Eye prevented a serious disaster tonight. Again, there were no reactions from state actors. The so-called Libyan Coast Guard did not react at all and this is not an isolated case. This is exactly why there are so many survivors on the SEA-EYE 4 once again, for whom we urgently need a safe place to disembark now. According to international law, this place can only be in Europe,” says Isler.
“The people rescued tonight must now come ashore quickly after receiving initial treatment on board in order to receive adequate further treatment. It is shocking that the rescue continues to depend on NGOs like us and also on the luck that sea rescuers are just nearby. The EU must finally work together to find a humane solution,” said Dr. Harald Kischlat, Chairman of German Doctors e. V.
The Bonn-based aid organization provides substantial support for the operation of the onboard hospital and regularly provides German Doctors for the missions to ensure initial medical care on the SEA EYE 4.
