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The view from here
Search and rescue in the Central Mediterranean: the view from here
  1. Ryan McHenry1,
  2. Sofie Karlsson2
  1. 1ScotSTAR, Paisley, UK
  2. 2Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK
  1. Correspondence to Dr Ryan McHenry; ryan.mchenry2{at}nhs.scot

https://doi.org/10.1136/emermed-2024-214608

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    The authors are an Emergency Physician and a Midwife on board the Geo Barents, Médecins Sans Frontières’ search and rescue ship in the Central Mediterranean Sea. Médecins Sans Frontières depends on private donations to support its work—www.msf.org.uk

    We are handed a little girl, maybe 3-year old and wrapped tight in winter clothes. Her mother comes next, from a ladder reaching from the deck down into the sea. On the Geo Barents, Médecins Sans Frontières’ search and rescue ship in the Central Mediterranean Sea, the deck fills with survivors of one of the most dangerous migration routes in the world. A sense of relief, and a sense that survival from these seas is just a beginning.

    A decade ago, in response to events and a news cycle dominated by shipwrecks in the Central Mediterranean, governments launched search and rescue operations in the region. Credited with saving more than 150 000 lives in 1 year of operation,1 these life-saving efforts were superseded by border protection operations. The vacuum left in search and rescue capability is filled by non-governmental organisations, such as Médecins Sans Frontières, who continue to fulfil the international obligation to provide rescue at sea. Now, …

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    Footnotes

    • X @rymchenry

    • Contributors RM conceived the work, both authors made substantial contributions to the initial draft and completion of the manuscript.

    • Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

    • Competing interests None declared.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; internally peer-reviewed.