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A rescue boat funded by street artist Banksy and carrying hundreds of migrants was in danger of capsizing in the Mediterranean last night.
In a series of emergency alerts, MV Louise Michel, who was in trouble for the first time on Friday, said she was unable to move due to a crowded deck.
The Italian coastguards arrived yesterday at the ship, which is in waters between Malta and the island of Lampedusa, but they were only able to rescue 49 of the most vulnerable passengers, including 13 children.
Now, of the 209, 160 migrants remain on board with ten crew members.
The Italian coast guards arrived at the boat yesterday, but were only able to rescue 49 of the most vulnerable passengers, including 13 children.
The MV Louise Micheal, named after an anarchist woman, is found in the waters between Malta and the island of Lampedusa.
Those who remained on board, complaining of dehydration, were praying that another rescue boat sent from the Sicilian port of Augusta 167 miles away would reach them in time.
But the Louise Michel last night remained dangerously overloaded and was said to be “losing its balance”.
The 100-foot former French navy ship, named after an anarchist woman, has a maximum capacity of 120.
‘We repeat, #LouiseMichel cannot move safely and no one comes to our aid,’ read a tweet sent from the ship.
‘Rescued people have experienced extreme trauma, it’s time they were taken to a #PlaceOfSafety. We need immediate help. ‘
Migration activists criticized Banksy for launching a rescue ship in the Mediterranean, saying it would only encourage human smugglers to put more migrants in small boats and send them to Europe.
The ship features some of Banksy’s signature work, including a girl in a life jacket holding a heart-shaped safety buoy.
So far this year, 550 migrants have died trying to cross the 300-mile stretch between Libya and the coasts of Italy and Malta.
The passengers on the Louise Michel were mainly African men who are believed to have left the Libyan coast in light boats, but also include women and children.
One of the boats transporting the migrants also had a corpse, which was brought on board and then placed on a life raft, covered by a white sheet. The life raft then joined Louise Michel and crawled away.
Last night Lea Reisner, Louise Michel’s chief operating officer, said: ‘People have sat in a mixture of salt water and fuel for days. It’s nighttime and the European states aren’t doing their fucking job.
They deny responsibility while we try to keep everyone alive. ‘
In the photo: Migrants transferred to the commercial port of Lampedusa
In a tweet accompanying a video of the migrants on the ship, the operators said yesterday: ‘They are survivors, they are turning their back on the EU. After escaping unspeakable horror and inhumanity, they need a safe place.
But Alp Mehmet, president of the campaign group Migration Watch, said: “Although Banksy may think that what he is doing is helping, his actions only serve to encourage this evil migrant smuggling trade.
‘These people only care about making money and benefiting from the misery of others.
“By launching this search and rescue operation in the Mediterranean, smugglers will be able to convince more migrants to try the dangerous crossing.”
On Wednesday, 45 people, including five children, were killed when their boat’s engine exploded off the coast of Libya. Official data shows that more than 19,500 immigrants have crossed the Mediterranean from Africa to Italy or Malta this year.
In the picture: a group of migrants in protective clothing waiting to be transferred by minibus from the port to Lampedusa after disembarking from the ship.
Although Banksy has not said how much he paid for the ship, the Louise Michel is believed to have cost £ 860,000. Last night, the United Nations also weighed in on the scandal, saying it was concerned about the lack of dedicated search and rescue efforts led by the EU.
In a statement, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said: “The humanitarian imperative to save lives should not be penalized or stigmatized, especially in the absence of dedicated state-led efforts.”
The Louise Michel secretly set out on August 18 from the Spanish port of Burriana, near Valencia. Banksy was silent on the crisis in the Mediterranean last night, but earlier posted a video on his Instagram page, where he told his 10 million followers: ‘Like most people who do in the art world, I bought a yacht to cross the Mediterranean. . It is a French navy ship that we turned into a lifeboat because EU authorities deliberately ignore calls for help from non-Europeans.
Banksy, who is hiding his true identity, is believed to have turned to a controversial German sea pilot and human rights activist named Pia Klemp for help. Her company Sea-Watch has provided the fully vegan ten-man crew for the ship, which sailed under the German flag.
Sea-Watch rescued more than 1,000 migrants in the Mediterranean last year, which has angered the Italian government. The Italian authorities have accused Ms Klemp in absentia of aiding illegal immigration.
