Claudia Calleja
AFM personnel battle rough sea to rescue 78 migrants
A group of 78 immigrants, including 25 women and five children, were rescued from rough seas early yesterday. Photo: Darrin Zammit Lupi.
Strong winds battered a drifting dinghy carrying 78 immigrants as they were brought ashore by the Armed Forces of Malta yesterday morning after a difficult rescue operation.
Five babies and 25 women, five of whom were pregnant, were among the immigrants rescued from force seven winds about 80 nautical miles south of Malta.
Despite the bad weather, no one was injured although the AFM's patrol boat was slightly damaged.
"By the time the immigrant's dinghy was spotted it was dark and the wind was picking up. It was a risky operation but we lowered the army's dinghy into the rough sea and transferred the immigrants safely onto the patrol boat," Captain James Grech said soon after reaching shore.
Meanwhile, police and army officers wearing face masks and gloves, escorted the immigrants off the patrol boat.
Women and children were the first to disembark and were led to a police bus that drove them to the police headquarters in Floriana for screening.
An Armed Forces of Malta spokesman explained that the AFM's operations centre in Luqa was informed about the plight of the immigrants on Monday afternoon by a foreigner who lived in Malta.
The caller claimed the migrants had left Libya two days earlier and said the group included women and children.
Meanwhile, the spokesman added, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees had also been informed by another foreigner and it notified the AFM, adding that the dinghy was adrift without fuel.
Capt. Grech recounted how he and his crew immediately set off on the rescue mission aboard the army patrol boat assisted by an AFM aircraft. The dinghy was initially spotted by an Air Wing Islander in the early afternoon which returned to base due to low fuel.
The immigrants' were subsequently located by another AFM Air Wing aircraft, before the patrol boat made contact with the persons in distress. The Luxembourg-hired aircraft crew braved the severe winds and storms and used sophisticated FLIR-equipment to pinpoint the dinghy. It remained in the area for some five hours, the AFM spokes-man added.
The patrol boat reached the dinghy at about 10 p.m. The transfer of immigrants to the patrol boat was completed by about 1 a.m., the vessel reaching Haywharf in Floriana at 8.30 a.m.
All immigrants were in good health, except for a pregnant woman who was unwell as she was close to the end of her term, the army spokesman added.
This was the second boatload of immigrants to reach the island this month. Last week, a group of 106 illegal immigrants were brought ashore after their rubber dinghy began taking in water. So far this year, over 1,200 immigrants landed on 13 boats. In the same period last year, 2,568 had arrived in 82 boats.
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lgalea
Oct 14th 2009, 23:18
louise vella
If I remember correctly it is some 700 euros per week per person.
Denis Catania
Oct 14th 2009, 19:33
A real loving mom, taking her child on a small boat in such a dangerous manner from a SAFE place like Libya. She is holding that child like I hold my American express card on a vacation. This child was used as a tool and at the same time the child was put in danger. Wake up Maltese, wake up PM Gonzi send your police after these parents.
Louis Gialanze
Oct 14th 2009, 16:02
A job well done by our boys, no doubt. These people look well fed and clothed and are no doubt economic migrants. Of course, the people of Malta who will have to dig deeper into their pockets, must be asking themselves whether this island will still be mediterranean in a couple of years down the line.
louise vella
Oct 14th 2009, 16:02
In view of what is published in today’s The Times in the article ‘Malta ranks second in EU study on HIV/AIDS care’, namely,
“Getting better access to care will be one of the key points for Malta's performance as immigrants led to new cases of HIV and AIDS on the island … According to provisional figures quoted in the study, there are 400 people living in Malta who have the virus, with half of them being African immigrants … Dr Cobolla agrees the immigrants' contribution to the spread of HIV/AIDS is serious … The study calls on governments to increase budgets in this area to provide better care and increase awareness.”
Can Dr Gonzi inform us how many of the 78 + 108 = 186 illegal immigrants arriving yesterday and last week are infected with HIV/AIDS? What is the estimated cost of their treatment for the government’s budget?
louise vella
Oct 14th 2009, 15:49
“Despite the bad weather, no one was injured although the AFM's patrol boat was slightly damaged.”
Can Dr Gonzi think of the consequences, for him and his government, if a Maltese member of the AFM gets killed or seriously injured in one of these adventures?
John Azzopardi
Oct 14th 2009, 12:27
Shame on our government and the opposition for not coming with a single plan to address this issue which is reaching a worrying proportion. We the Maltese and Gozitans have had enough. We are full up like Pullicino Orlando had said almost a year ago. How people get silenced in public. Everyone needs to wake up and address this issue once and for. We are creating whole new villages on a small island of 122 sq miles and our standard of living is suffering. Before you know it, we will be all the way to a third level country again after all the hard work. Shame on our politicians.
John Portelli
Oct 14th 2009, 10:41
Now we did a nice deed to save them,so now we SHOULD SEND THEM BACK WERE THEY BELONG IN AFRICA.MALTA IS FULL UP.
H Dempster
Oct 14th 2009, 10:23
How disgusting to risk children's lives for money . The mother is at fault as much as the human trafficer is, as she preferred to risk the live of the young one and should sent back immediatly to serve them as a lesson to all future immigrants that WE , MALTESE , DO NOT WANT THEM HERE. punto e basta.