Egyptian marine ship rescues 60 migrants stranded on boat in Mediterranean (Photo: the Egyptian Ministry of Transport)
The statement explained that Wadi Al-Karnak, a ship belonging to HCMLT, which was on route from the Red Sea Port of Safaga to the French Port of Dunkirk to transport a wheat shipment to Egypt, received on Saturday morning a signal from the American Protection and Compensation Club (P&l club) indicating distress signals from a boat in the ship’s navigation vicinity.
Wadi Al-Karnak responded by changing its direction by 40 nautical miles and sailed for five hours towards the distressed boat to carry out a rescue operation, the statement added.
The boat, which was stranded for a week, carried Syrian, Lebanese and Palestinian passengers who had left from Lebanon seeking to reach Italy in search of job opportunities, according to AP.
The passengers - - 24 men, 12 women, 20 children and 4 infants - - spent days in the sea without food and water.
Wadi Al-Karnak managed to tag the stranded boat to its hull and supplied the passengers, who were extremely fatigued, with food, water and medicines, the statement explained.
However, high waves and water continuing to leak into the migrant boat forced the crew of Wadi Al-Karnak to allow passengers on its board in order to save their lives, the statement explained.
According to the statement, Wadi Al-Karnak helped the passengers disembark on a boat belonging to a Maltese search and rescue centre safely on Monday at 6 pm and the boat arrived in Malta at 7 pm.
"There were no losses in lives and all passengers were in a stable stable, HCMLT stressed.
HCMLT said it coordinated the rescue efforts with the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Egyptian Authority for Maritime Safety, the Maritime Transport Sector (MTS), and the Search and Rescue Centre in Malta.
More than 3,000 people died or went missing in the Mediterranean and Atlantic while trying to reach Europe last year -- double the toll from 2020, according to the the United Nations.
Last week, a boat carrying 27 Egyptian and other migrants - apparently heading to Europe - capsised off Libya's coast, leaving two dead and 19 more missing and presumed dead, while six survived the wreck, according to the Libyan Department for Combating Illegal Migration.
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