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Updated 8.15pm Rescue NGO Sea Watch has dispatched a vessel believed to be sinking to the south of Malta, saying that there were already people floundering in the water. The NGO said that it had picked up communication about the ‘distress case’ but thatSea Watch heads to save migrants from sinking vessel
Updated 8.15pm Rescue NGO Sea Watch has dispatched a vessel believed to be sinking to the south of Malta, saying that there were already people floundering in the water. The NGO said that it had picked up communication about the ‘distress case’ but that a merchant vessel nearby was not responding. The Italian search and rescue centre, when contacted, referred the NGO to the centre in Tripoli, saying that it would be responsible, but it failed to get any information. The Maltese search and rescue centre is involved in coordinating the response but is not responsble, according to a spokesman for the airborne section of Sea Watch. The NGO said that in the absence of any information it dispatched one of its vessels, noting that it would take the boat 10 hours to get to the site. The latest information is that there are 50 persons on board the rubber boat and that there were already two people in the water. «The rubber boat was already half sunken and so more casualties are likely,» the spokesman said, noting that no other rescue operation had as yet been confirmed. The spokesman also lamented that the merchant vessel was not responding: "It shows that the overall situation of... Read more