The ''Blue Sky M'' incident is a maritime incident which took place on 30–31 December 2014 in the
Ionian Sea
The Ionian Sea ( el, Ιόνιο Πέλαγος, ''Iónio Pélagos'' ; it, Mar Ionio ; al, Deti Jon ) is an elongated bay of the Mediterranean Sea. It is connected to the Adriatic Sea to the north, and is bounded by Southern Italy, including C ...
, when a cargo vessel carrying many migrants from Syria and neighbouring states was abandoned by its crew.
Events
In December 2014,
Moldova
Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The List of states ...
n-flagged MV ''Blue Sky M'' left
Korfez,
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
heading for
Rijeka
Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Primor ...
in
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
.
On 30 December 2014, when the ship was near the island of
Othonoi
Othonoi ( el, Οθωνοί, also rendered as Othoni, grc, Ὀθρωνός , translit=Othrōnós) is a small and inhabited Greek island in the Ionian Sea, located northwest of Corfu, and is the westernmost point of Greece. Othonoi is the largest ...
a passenger of the ship called an emergency number for help from a mobile phone. The alarm was raised because of suspected armed people on board,
Greek state television reported, claiming that "illegal immigrants" were on the ship. But a coastguard official later said the Greek frigate had contacted the cargo ship's captain, who said the ship was not in any danger and was not requesting assistance. Shortly after this, the vessel changed course and - now headed towards southern Italy - was seemingly abandoned by its crew.
As the ship neared
Santa Maria di Leuca
Santa Maria di Leuca, often spelled simply Leuca (, from ''Leukos'', "white"), is a ''frazione'' of the ''comune'' of Castrignano del Capo, in the Salento peninsula (Apulia), southern Italy.
A part of the town once belonged to the ''comune'' of Ga ...
, on mainland
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
's southernmost tip, Italian port authorities dispatched two helicopters as a precaution and boarded the ship with a team of six
Italian coast guard
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
officials. The team took control of the ship after realising there was no crew to be found. The Italian coast guard said 970 migrants were on board the ship, mostly believed to be
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
ns fleeing the country's
ongoing civil war, although the actual number of migrants was subsequently revised downwards. The migrants paid thousands of dollars each to smugglers to get them to Europe. The smugglers apparently left the ship's controls on
autopilot and then abandoned ship – leaving the ''Blue Sky M'' to head towards the Italian coast. The migrants inside did not know what was going on.
Italian coast guard spokesman Filippo Marini was quoted as saying the Italians had averted a disaster by interrupting the programmed route that would have had the ship crash into the shore. "It was a real race against the clock", he said, adding: "Unlocking the engines was a difficult and delicate operation, but they managed to do it."
Italian coastguards docked the ship at the Italian port of
Gallipoli
The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...
. The migrants were taken to local schools and a gymnasium. Thirty-five of them were taken to hospital, with some treated for hypothermia. The
Italian Red Cross
The Italian Red Cross (IRC, it, Croce Rossa Italiana or ''CRI'') is the Italian national Red Cross society. The Italian Red Cross was one of the original founding members of the International Committee of the Red Cross in 1919.
History
Early h ...
initially said that four people were found dead on the ship but later withdrew its report.
See also
*
Ezadeen incident - a very similar incident which occurred just days later
*
Timeline of the European migrant crisis
This is a timeline of the European migrant crisis of 2015 and 2016.
2014
* 11 September: 2014 Malta migrant shipwreck A migrant boat with more than 500 people on board sank near Malta; nine survivors were rescued.
* 15 September: 2014 Libya ...
References
{{coord missing, Mediterranean
Maritime incidents in 2014
Maritime incidents related to the European migrant crisis
2014 in Italy
Transport disasters involving refugees of the Arab Winter (2011–present)