MESSINA – “The French sailing ship Belem, on which the Olympic torch travels bound for Marseille, is currently navigating one of the busiest stretches of sea in the world: the Strait of Messina. The sailing ship is also accompanied by naval and aerial vehicles of the Coast Guard which supervise and monitor navigation in this delicate maritime hub”. The Coast Guard itself announced it.
The convoy is constantly monitored by the Strait Maritime Authority, from whose “Vts” control center (Vessel Traffic Service) there is “a continuous exchange of communications useful for guaranteeing the safety of navigation of both the Olympic torch and any other vessel passing through the area”.
The Coast Guard explains: “The center Vts uses modern technological tools and sophisticated sensors to monitor the numerous merchant and recreational traffic that takes place in the stretch of sea that separates Sicily from Calabria. With the Vtsthe data relating to the presence and passage of all ships are therefore managed in real time: speed, route and estimated travel times”.
