A boat carrying around 500 people is currently battling stormy weather in Malta’s search and rescue zone, an NGO said on Tuesday.
Alarm Phone said it had “repeatedly” contacted Maltese and Italian authorities about the vessel in distress, but so far had received no response.
People onboard were reporting “very dangerous conditions,” they said, adding, “we are scared for their lives!”
Alarm Phone had re-established contact with the boat by 7pm on Monday evening, the organisation reported on its Twitter account.
“That they survived the night is a relief,” said a spokesperson for the hotline NGO on Tuesday morning, describing weather conditions in the area as “really bad.”
“Communication [with the vessel] has been extremely difficult due to the loudness of the weather and the quality of the connection,” they said, adding that Alarm Phone had continued updating authorities with information such as revised GPS coordinates since being alerted to the situation.
Despite having been in difficulty since Monday evening, by Tuesday morning the vessel had received no assistance, they confirmed.
Alarm Phone is a volunteer-run organisation that provides a hotline for those experiencing difficulties in the Mediterranean and alerts authorities to boats in distress.
Two merchant vessels in the area are attempting to shield the boat from larger waves, they said, though stressed that such vessels are not equipped to handle rescues in difficult conditions such as this one and risk further incident by attempting to do so.
Malta has rescued one person attempting to cross from Africa into Europe so far this year, according to a data portal run by the UNHCR.
Times of Malta has contacted Armed Forces Malta (AFM) and the Home Affairs Ministry for comment.
In a statement, ADPD - The Green Party called on the government to rescue those in distress
Mina Jack Tolu, ADPD EP Candidate and International Secretary said: "This is an emergency, and emergencies require an urgent response. Malta must not let people die at sea."