In May, our crew rescued or helped rescue over 370 people in distress at sea. Stationed on Lampedusa, our rescue ship Aurora allows us to patrol the area, quickly reach boats in distress, stabilize them until the Italian coastguard arrives, or take people on board ourselves.
3rd/4th of May
In early May, our crew rescued 71 people in distress at sea and brought them safely to shore. From the air, our Seabird 3 crew provided support.
16th of May
During one flight, our reconnaissance aircraft Seabird spotted six boats with people in acute distress at sea. We alerted the authorities, but no help came. Our crew on the Aurora immediately set out and reached two of the boats that same night, carrying around 200 people. Together with @_seapunks and @sosmediterranee, they were brought to safety.
Once again, civil rescue ships stepped in where states refused to help.
22nd/23rd of May
Early in the morning, 50 people were able to disembark safely in Lampedusa. We reached their boat in distress during the night and are relieved to have found them in time – worsening winds had made the situation on the Mediterranean even more dangerous.
28th of May
On Wednesday, we rescued over 50 people, including a one-year-old child and two heavily pregnant women. Despite this, the Italian authorities did not assign us the nearest safe port.
Rough seas and strong winds made the situation on the Mediterranean extremely dangerous.
Only after increasing pressure did reason and international law prevail – we were finally allowed to disembark in Lampedusa. The rescued people are now safely on land. Before that, the two pregnant women had to be medically evacuated.
For 10 years, we’ve been helping people fleeing across the Mediterranean. 10 years without a state-funded sea rescue program. 10 years of Europe choosing isolation over solidarity.
The daily deaths at Europe’s borders will only stop when there are open and safe routes for people to flee.
