BENCOMO EXPRESS

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Merchant and SAR ships assisted 180 migrants

Three precarious boats got assistance from the night of Jan 6, 2024, until the morning of Jan 7 in waters near Tenerife, El Hierro and Gran Canaria with 180 people on board, including six women. On Jan 7 at around 8:24 a.m. LT the 'Bencomo Express' informed the MRCC in Tenerife of the sighting of a canoe, stopped in waters near Los Cristianos. The 'Salvamar Alpheratz' was mobilized and at 9.30 a.m. located the canoe without steering and proceeded to rescue the 39 people on board, all of them sub-Saharan men, and headed to the port of Los Cristianos with the empty boat in tow. In the afternoon of Jan 6, the Civil Guard informed the MRCC in Tenerife of a canoe about 11 kilometers south of El Hierro, so the 'Concepción Arenal' was mobilized to investigate and located it at 8:25 p.m. It was escorted to the La Restinga dock where 87 sub-Saharan people, including six women, disembarked half an hour later. The same afternoon the Sasemar 101 aircraft located a boat sailing more than 90 kilometers south of Gran Canaria and mobilized the 'Salvamar Macondo'. The MRCC also diverted the 'CL Fugou' to the position, which escorted it and updating its course. At around 8:30 p.m. the 'Salvamar Macondo' began the approach and proceeded to rescue the 54 people on board, all of them North Africans, whom they disembarked after 11 p.m. at the Arguineguín dock.

Ferry located migrant boat with 60 people

On Aug 11, 2023, the 'Bencomo Express' , sailing between Los Cristianos and Santa Cruz de Palma, located an open boat with about 60 people on board about seven nautical miles from Los Cristianos and notified Salvamento Marítimo. The SAR boat 'Salvamar Alpheratz' (MMSI: 224191590) was mobilized by the CCS Tenerife and escprted it to the port. https://twitter.com/salvamentogob/status/1689918677909426176

Collision off Tenerife

In the morning of Feb 23, 2020, the 'Bencomo Express', was in collision wioth the 'Vólcan de Taburiente', in the port of Santa Cruz in Tenerife. The latter was docked at the Cristiano Pier in the entrance of the port. The 'Bencomo Express' was just coming from San Sébastian in Gomera when the stormy winds caught the ship which was pushed towards the larger ferry the bow of which hit the stern on the starboard side, causing scratches and holes at the height of the deck. The catamaran ferry, which was already half an hour late due to the storm, broke off the docking maneuver and sailed back to La Goméra. The 'Vólcan de Taburiente' left the port of Tenerife at 9:15 p.m. towards San Sébasitan on Goméra. Both ships did not suffer major damage and remained in service. Spanish reports with video: https://www.teldeactualidad.com/noticia/canarias/2020/02/23/2120.html https://www.eldiario.es/canariasahora/tenerifeahora/sucesos/Fred-Olsen-Armas-chocan-Cristianos_0_998800325.html