Search and rescue

Finding a person at sea was very difficult but the searches for the Simshar crew were carefully thought out, planned and coordinated, the army told the report author.

Searching for a body at sea was "particularly difficult" because "one is effectively looking for a head above the water," army commander Brigadier Carmel Vassallo said.

He pointed out that there was no coordination between the search and rescue efforts of the armed forces and the fishermen. This was an area that needed to be fine-tuned in the future.

Last July 17, the fishing vessel Laura II located Noel Carabott's body and, the following day, a helicopter spotted the body of Karmenu Bugeja. Sometime later Mark Bugeja, the captain of the Grecale, noticed a white floating object with Mr Bugeja on top. When rescuers asked him where his son Theo was Mr Bugeja told them: "They all died".

On boarding the Grecale, the two soldiers who gave Mr Bugeja first aid noted that he was extremely alert. One said: "He looked normal and not particularly shrunken or someone who had suffered severe weight loss".

They also noted that "at no time did Simon Bugeja ask for a proper drink of water".

The medical team at Mater Dei Hospital noted that Mr Bugeja was very dehydrated, lethargic and had some second degree burns. Several round marks on his calves showed severe damage to his skin that may have been caused by burns, friction, blast explosions or pressure.

Contrary to speculation, there was no evidence of fish eggs laid in his wounds. A wound on his lip was caused by sun burn, which he suffered on his face.

The doctor who examined him was doubtful whether such sun burn was a flame burn.

In his testimony Mr Bugeja said hospital staff and the police told him he had fish eggs in his legs.