Migrant Offshore Aid Station (Moas) yesterday rescued 274 people, including 200 Syrians, from a 15-metre wooden boat in distress.

MY Phoenix , the 40-metre vessel being used by MOAS, was directed to the migrant boat by Rome’s Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre.

The rescued migrants were 236 men, 21 women and 17 children. One of the women was nine months pregnant.

The group also included 24 Pakistanis, 18 Moroccans, 12 Nigerians, six Eritreans, four Ghanians, three Malians, two Gambians, two Bangladeshis, one person from Ivory Coast, one from Mauritania and one from Tunisia.

The migrants were transferred to an Italian navy ship for disembarkation in Italy.

MOAS thanked the Italian authorities for assisting the rescue and taking the migrants to Italy.

“MOAS has been extremely successful in saving lives at sea but we need more funding to conduct future missions. We are also dependent on the excellent cooperation we are finding from Rome’s Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre and Mare Nostrum, which will unfortunately soon come to an end. We must all work together to ensure that lives continue to be saved,” said founder Christopher Catrambone.

Before being transferred to the Italian boat, the migrants were sheltered on Phoenix for around six hours during which they were provided with medical assistance, food, water and blankets. The MOAS team treated the migrants for seasickness, asthma, an ankle fracture and other conditions. The temperatures of all the migrants were also taken.

Since it began operating on August 25, MOAS rescued more than 2,500 migrants from distressed boats crossing the Mediterranean Sea. In the past five days, MOAS rescued 371 migrants.

Phoenix is now on its way back to Malta for restocking before it continues on its third and final mission this year, ending on October 31.

MOAS is a private NGO initiative to save lives in the Mediterranean Sea, one of the world’s deadliest border crossings. Its aim is to provide assistance at sea in co-ordination with the Rescue Coordination Centres in the region.

To monitor the progress of the vessel and keep up to date with the latest news, follow MOAS on twitter @moas_eu and use the hashtag #MOAS to enter discussions about migration.

Donations can be made on www.moas.eu