Malta would rescue people at sea if they were European, sea rescue NGO says
A sea rescue NGO lambasted the Maltese authorities on Wednesday after 82 people went missing at sea, claiming the island would have rescued them had they been European.
The 82 people remain missing, Sea-Eye said, with information provided to Maltese authorities by separate NGO about their boat seemingly ignored.
Sea-Eye said that its rescue ship spent Sunday and Monday searching for a group of people in distress in the Maltese Search and Rescue Zone. The group had been flagged by AlarmPhone with the Sea-Eye 4 vessel and, separately, the Maltese Rescue Control Centre, it said.
AlarmPhone sent updated coordinates several times until it lost communication with the group of 82 people, it added.
"The Maltese RCC made no discernible attempts to locate the boat. The Maltese RCC claimed it had 'no information' during a phone call with an AlarmPhone employee. Finally, the AlarmPhone employee was accused of blocking the phone line for other maritime emergencies, Sea Eye said.
The NGO added there is currently no information on the whereabouts of the 82 people, and that although the maritime emergency occurred in Malta's SAR zone, Malta did not involve the Sea-Eye 4 in a coordinated...