The search for 48 missing migrants continued on Sunday after their boat capsized near the Spanish island of El Hierro. This incident, one of the deadliest in 30 years of crossings from Africa to the Canary Islands, has left nine people dead, including a child.
Rescuers were able to save 27 of the 84 migrants who were attempting to reach the Spanish coast. A Reuters journalist reported that a coastguard vessel had left El Hierro to continue the search, and additional rescue boats and air support were expected to join the effort.
Spanish authorities confirmed the migrants were from Mali, Mauritania, and Senegal. The emergency services received a distress call from the boat, located about four miles east of El Hierro, shortly after midnight on Saturday. The boat sank during the rescue operation, officials said.
“They had been at sea for at least two days without food and it seems there was a panic before the boat capsized,” said Anselmo Pestana, the Spanish government representative in the Canary Islands. He added that wind and poor visibility made the rescue efforts extremely challenging.
Walking Borders, an NGO that assists migrants, confirmed that a child aged between 12-15 was among the dead. Three other boats carrying 208 migrants reached the Canary Islands during the night.
Local authorities attributed the recent surge in migrants to the calm seas and gentle winds associated with late summer in the Atlantic Ocean off West Africa. Data from the European Union’s border agency Frontex shows a 154% increase in migrant crossings to the Canary Islands this year, with 21,620 migrants crossing in the first seven months.
The route from Africa to the Canary Islands has witnessed a tragic history of migrant crossings. The deadliest shipwreck on record occurred in 2009 off the island of Lanzarote, where 25 people lost their lives. The latest tragedy serves as a grim reminder of the dangerous journey undertaken by those seeking a better life in Europe.
