The border guards aboard the patrol vessel MAI 1101 of the Coast Guard, on Frontex mission within the Joint Maritime Operation “POSEIDON SEA 2017”, rescued, during the patrol activity in the Aegean Sea, 55 persons, out of which 17 women and 21 children, who were on a boat about to sink. The rescued persons were transported and handed over safely to the authorities in Chios Port in order to carry out the specific procedures.
On 16.07.2017, the crew of the vessel MAI 1101, on a mission of surveillance of the EU external maritime borders within Joint Operation “POSEIDON SEA 2017”, coordinated by FRONTEX Agency, identified, during the patrol mission carried out on the Aegean Sea, a small inflatable boat, overloaded with persons heading towards the territorial waters of Greece.
After the evaluation of the situation on-the-spot and bearing in mind the overcrowding of the boat and the risk to sink, the Romanian border guards initiated the rescue action.
55 Afghan persons (17 men, 17 women and 21 children) were transshipped on board of Coast Guard vessel.
The border guards offered support, food and water to the rescued persons and several hours later they were disembarked safely in Chios Port and handed-over to the Greek authorities in order to develop the specific procedures (medical care, identification, recording, fingerprinting, etc.).
Since the beginning of the deployment in Greece (January 2017), the Romanian border guards on the Coast Guard vessels rescued individually and in cooperation with the crew of the other vessels of the EU member states deployed by Frontex Agency to Greece within Joint Operation “POSEIDON SEA 2017”, 841 persons in danger onboard of small boats, in the Greek territorial waters.
Background information
The patrol vessel MAI 1101 - project P-157 within the Coast Guard started the patrol mission within the joint operation “POSEIDON SEA 2017”, organized under Frontex aegis at the beginning of May 2017.
The Romanian vessel took over the mission from MAI 1102, which carried out surveillance and control at the Greek maritime borders, for 4 months (January-April 2017), period in which the Romanian border guards rescued more than 700 persons in danger in the Aegean Sea.
The main objective of the Joint Operation “POSEIDON SEA 2017” is to grant support to the Hellenic authorities in the surveillance and control of the EU maritime borders, as well as to search and rescue the persons in danger at sea at the external border of the European Union.
We mention the fact that “Poseidon Sea” operation is financed by the European Union and coordinated by Frontex Agency and the responsibility on the information in this press release belongs to the Romanian Border Police.
