A day of rescue in the Mediterranean
Can you see it?
"On the bridge, the mood is tense. The team, silent. I watch my colleagues: some scan the horizon with their binoculars, others make calls with their flashlights."
Lucille is in charge of communications on board the Ocean Viking. The moment she describes is essential to our mission: it's the binocular watch. To rescue people in distress at sea, our work begins long before we launch our lifeboats.
As soon as our ship arrives in the area of operations, crew members take turns scanning the horizon with binoculars from the deck. It's a crucial mission: a single dot, reflection or flash could be a boat in distress, carrying women, men and children in mortal danger.
This responsibility requires extreme concentration, taking place in one-hour slots per person. With a 15-kilometer field of vision, one comes to hope that the craft isn't blue, at the risk of it melting into the immensity of the sea.
In the dark, the search is even more difficult: "I remember a boat we found in the dark thanks to the flash of one of the survivors' cell phone", says Lucille.
When a boat is spotted, it's imperative not to lose sight of it. You then need to alert the relevant authorities and prepare for rescue. At sea, every moment of watchfulness is a race against time to save lives.
Thank you, dear donors, for your support and your precious donations!
Lucille is in charge of communications on board the Ocean Viking. The moment she describes is essential to our mission: it's the binocular watch. To rescue people in distress at sea, our work begins long before we launch our lifeboats.
As soon as our ship arrives in the area of operations, crew members take turns scanning the horizon with binoculars from the deck. It's a crucial mission: a single dot, reflection or flash could be a boat in distress, carrying women, men and children in mortal danger.
This responsibility requires extreme concentration, taking place in one-hour slots per person. With a 15-kilometer field of vision, one comes to hope that the craft isn't blue, at the risk of it melting into the immensity of the sea.
In the dark, the search is even more difficult: "I remember a boat we found in the dark thanks to the flash of one of the survivors' cell phone", says Lucille.
When a boat is spotted, it's imperative not to lose sight of it. You then need to alert the relevant authorities and prepare for rescue. At sea, every moment of watchfulness is a race against time to save lives.
Thank you, dear donors, for your support and your precious donations!
A little girl like any other
At 9, Line is a little girl like any other. She laughs, plays, squabbles with her brothers and sisters, and dreams of being a dentist when she grows up. Yet she has already been through unimaginable hardships.
"At sea, the boat was pitching a lot. We almost capsized. Everyone was jostling each other. When you arrived, we all started crying."
A few months ago, she was rescued with her parents and siblings in the middle of the Mediterranean, at the end of a long journey from Lebanon. Line suffers from severe jaw pain and has to undergo treatment that her parents could no longer afford. Her disabled twin sister also required regular and expensive care.
In these conditions, the family took the painful decision to leave Lebanon, taking insane risks in the hope of a better life where their daughters could be properly cared for. Sadly, Line's twin sister did not survive the journey.
This family are among the 40,915 people rescued by SOS MEDITERRANEE since 2016. Their stories are rarely happy ones, and their tales of exile are all punctuated by painful ordeals. On the other hand, their emotion and relief at being rescued, welcomed and cared for are always immense.
With your support, we will continue to be at sea to rescue all those in mortal danger, like Line and her family. Help us continue our vital rescue mission!
"At sea, the boat was pitching a lot. We almost capsized. Everyone was jostling each other. When you arrived, we all started crying."
A few months ago, she was rescued with her parents and siblings in the middle of the Mediterranean, at the end of a long journey from Lebanon. Line suffers from severe jaw pain and has to undergo treatment that her parents could no longer afford. Her disabled twin sister also required regular and expensive care.
In these conditions, the family took the painful decision to leave Lebanon, taking insane risks in the hope of a better life where their daughters could be properly cared for. Sadly, Line's twin sister did not survive the journey.
This family are among the 40,915 people rescued by SOS MEDITERRANEE since 2016. Their stories are rarely happy ones, and their tales of exile are all punctuated by painful ordeals. On the other hand, their emotion and relief at being rescued, welcomed and cared for are always immense.
With your support, we will continue to be at sea to rescue all those in mortal danger, like Line and her family. Help us continue our vital rescue mission!
A painful moment at sea
Dear Captains,
Thanks to your support, our teams were able to rescue 64 people during two separate rescue operations in the Libyan search and rescue region last weekend. We know that our place is at sea, reaching out to those who are drowning.
But our teams also experienceda very difficult time in the midst of the rescue operations.
"There's not much to say when faced with a body floating at sea. One person's death should be enough to change policies. This deceased person has been found, but it proves that many others disappear without anyone knowing."
These are the words of Alisha, communications officer on board the Ocean Viking after the tragic discovery of a lifeless body between two rescue operations last Sunday. The day before, the Geo Barents, a vessel of the NGO Médecins sans Frontières, had recovered 11 other bodies in this specific area of the Mediterranean.Our thoughts are with the families of the missing.
Thanks to your support, our teams were able to rescue 64 people during two separate rescue operations in the Libyan search and rescue region last weekend. We know that our place is at sea, reaching out to those who are drowning.
But our teams also experienceda very difficult time in the midst of the rescue operations.
"There's not much to say when faced with a body floating at sea. One person's death should be enough to change policies. This deceased person has been found, but it proves that many others disappear without anyone knowing."
These are the words of Alisha, communications officer on board the Ocean Viking after the tragic discovery of a lifeless body between two rescue operations last Sunday. The day before, the Geo Barents, a vessel of the NGO Médecins sans Frontières, had recovered 11 other bodies in this specific area of the Mediterranean.Our thoughts are with the families of the missing.
First mission of the year
Yesterday afternoon, the Ocean Viking rescued 71 people from an overloaded inflatable boat. An aircraft from the NGO Sea-Watch raised the alarm at around 1:30pm, and our vessel immediately headed for the position.
Arriving on site, our teams noted the presence of water in the boat, which was threatening to overturn. Faced with the urgency of the situation, we immediately evacuated all those on board, including 5 women and 16 unaccompanied minors.
Shortly after the rescue, the Italian authorities assigned the port of Livorno, 1,167 km north of Italy, to disembark the survivors. This decision will keep us away from the rescue zone for at least a week.
Shortly after the rescue, the Italian authorities assigned the port of Livorno, 1,167 km north of Italy, to disembark the survivors. This decision will keep us away from the rescue zone for at least a week.
We are currently sailing up to the port of Livorno and will be heading back to the rescue zone as soon as possible. Thanks to your support, we will continue our vital mission.
Thank you for standing by us
.
244 people saved in 12 hours!
Yesterday (December 27), the Ocean Viking rescued 244 men, women and children in distress during three rescue operations, in international waters off Libya.
- At around 1am, a rescue operation was then launched close to a Libyan patrol boat. 122 people, including 8 unaccompanied minors, were rescued.
- As our vessel headed north, a second wooden boat, totally overloaded, was spotted. In coordination with the Italian authorities, our teams rescued 106 people, including 8 women and 4 children.
- A few moments later, the NGO Pilotes Volontaires spotted a fiberglass boat in distress close to our ship. Our teams were then able to rescue 16 people, again in coordination with the Italian authorities.
As we write, our teams are taking turns day and night to care for the 244 men, women and children on board. The ship is currently en route to Bari, where we should arrive on Saturday to disembark the shipwrecked crew, before setting sail again as soon as possible.
3 rescues in 24 hours
This weekend, the Ocean Viking rescued 128 people - men, women and children in distress - during three rescue operations, in international waters off Libya.
Many of them had severe burns from the fuel on the bottom of the boat and symptoms of intoxication. One of them lost consciousness on arrival on the Ocean Viking; she was immediately attended to by our medical team and is now in stable condition.
The Ocean Viking has set course for the remote port of Ortona, on the Adriatic coast, where the Italian authorities have instructed us to disembark the 128 survivors. As weather conditions deteriorate, it is unacceptable that these men, women and children, already exhausted.
Despite the obstacles, as winter approaches, the crossings continue as soon as weather windows allow. We remain determined and ready to continue our mission. For this, and more than ever, we need your help!
Many of them had severe burns from the fuel on the bottom of the boat and symptoms of intoxication. One of them lost consciousness on arrival on the Ocean Viking; she was immediately attended to by our medical team and is now in stable condition.
The Ocean Viking has set course for the remote port of Ortona, on the Adriatic coast, where the Italian authorities have instructed us to disembark the 128 survivors. As weather conditions deteriorate, it is unacceptable that these men, women and children, already exhausted.
Despite the obstacles, as winter approaches, the crossings continue as soon as weather windows allow. We remain determined and ready to continue our mission. For this, and more than ever, we need your help!
500 people rescued in 48 hours
Over the past 48 hours,our teams have rescued over 500 people in distress, in 11 rescues. While these people are now safe and sound, our teams are still in operation as alerts continue.
It all started yesterday morning, when we carried out the rescue of a first boat, spotted by binoculars from the deck ofthe Ocean Viking, with 55 people on board. The alerts then multiplied and the rescue operations went on relentlessly throughout last night and are still continuing at this time.
All these operations are being carried out under the coordination of the Italian authorities and in cooperation with other NGO vessels present on site.
All these operations are being carried out under the coordination of the Italian authorities and in cooperation with other NGO vessels present on site.
These staggering figures testify to the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Mediterranean and the extreme need to increase search and rescue resources in this area.
In the face of absolute urgency, our vital mission must continue. For this, and more than ever, we need your help!
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