On August 27, the container ship NYK Orion received an emergency call from the Maritime Rescue Coordination Center (MRCC) in Malta to help a vessel carrying presumably African immigrants, while the container ship was sailing from Valencia, Spain, to Port Said, Egypt, the company says in a release.
NYK Orion immediately headed for the position given by the MRCC, and on discovering a ship in distress, rescued 257 people at 2:50 p.m. local time.
Those rescued were given drinking water and food, and medical attention was provided to those who had suffered minor injuries.
All those who were rescued disembarked onto an escort boat off the coast of Valletta at 5:47 p.m. local time on August 28.