495 asylum-seekers saved by privately-funded migrant rescue vessel in Mediterranean

The Phoenix, a 40-metre vessel operated by the first ever privately-funded Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS), was involved in saving around 495 asylum-seekers in the Mediterranean sea on Tuesday.

Earlier the day, the vessel was directed to attend to a wooden vessel by Italy’s Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) and rescued some 245 asylum-seekers, including 45 children, of whom most are Syrians and Palestinians.

A second boat carrying around 250 asylum-seekers was shadowed by the Phoenix for a number of hours until the Italian authorities were able to attend to it. All asylum-seekers were transferred and eventually disembarked in Italy.

The Malta-based MOAS has in the past two weeks helped in the rescue of more than 1,500 asylum-seekers, all of whom were disembarked in Italy. On Monday, the MOAS assisted in the rescue of some 700 asylum-seekers, taking some 300 on board and assisting in the transportation of around 400 from another boat. Last week, it rescued asylum-seekers from two other boats, one carrying 227 and another carrying 96.

MOAS is an NGO aiming to prevent loss of life at sea by providing aid to migrants crossing the Mediterranean in unsafe boats.

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