The balance carried out by the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility through the General Directorate of Merchant Marine reflects that Maritime Rescue coordinated the assistance and rescue of 61,824 people in a total of 7,520 maritime actions in the delimitation of search and rescue responsibility in all Spain.
Irregular immigration increased by 37% compared to the previous year and rescue had to be provided to 26,521 people in 1,239 boats.
In 2023 there were a total of 3,271 vessels involved in maritime accidents, distributed among 2,351 recreational vessels, 534 merchant vessels and 386 fishing vessels.
The Maritime Rescue centers located in Catalonia, specifically in Barcelona and Tarragona, have recorded an increase of 40% in the maritime actions attended.
The data provided by the head of the Barcelona Rescue Coordination Center, Gerardo Gantes, shows that 964 actions have taken place in Catalonia, assisting a total of 3,007 people. “From the Barcelona Rescue Center, we have assisted 2,342 people in 659 actions, distributed between Barcelona and Girona,” he argues.
In relation to maritime incidents, 529 recreational vessels were involved, which suffered a decrease of 9% compared to the previous year. The remaining incidents are distributed among 26 merchant vessels and 33 fishing vessels. From the Tarragona Rescue Coordination Center, 5,002 vessels were counted at the entrances and exits of the port.
The protection of the marine environment by Maritime Rescue during 2023 attended to 552 actions in a perimeter of 253 million km² of sea. There are 14 of these actions in Catalonia.
