At least nine people died when an open wooden boat carrying 84 migrants from Africa sank. 27 people could be saved, Spain’s maritime rescue service said on request. The search is still ongoing for 48 people missing in the sea off the Canary Island of El Hierro.
The boat capsized in rough seas shortly before the harbor in the town of La Restinga because too many passengers moved to one side as the sea rescue cruiser approached.
According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), almost 30,000 migrants have reached the Canary Islands from Africa this year. This number is much larger than the same period last year. The ships departed from the West African coast between Guinea in the south and Morocco in the north.
Spanish aid organization Caminando Fronteras estimates that around 4,800 people drowned or died of exhaustion on crossings hundreds of kilometers long between January and the end of May.
