Latest news with #migrantcrisis
Telegraph
4 days ago
- General
- Telegraph
Children among seven dead as migrant boat capsizes
Two five-year-old girls were among seven people killed when a migrant boat capsized as it reached a port in Spain's Canary Islands. The victims drowned after migrants waiting to disembark the overcrowded boat accidentally capsized it by crowding on one side in what was the latest tragedy on the perilous route, emergency services said. Juan Miguel Padron, the mayor of El Pinar municipality, told local television that around 150 people were on the boat. It was being escorted by a rescue ship to La Restinga harbour on El Hierro, the archipelago's smallest island, when tragedy struck. As it neared the port, the vessel tipped over and some of the migrants 'were trapped in the boat and others died while being saved', Mr Padron added. Four women, two girls aged five and another girl aged 16 were killed. A three-year-old boy and a third five-year-old girl almost drowned before being transported by helicopter to a hospital in Tenerife, the emergency services wrote on X. Two three-month-old babies, a pregnant woman and three minors were in hospital on El Hierro, they said. RTVE, the Spanish public broadcaster, aired footage of rescuers throwing lifebuoys to people clinging onto an overturned boat and treading water off El Hierro. Spain's maritime rescue service told AFP in a statement that a rescue ship had found the boat that morning and accompanied it to La Restinga. 'During the disembarkation, some of the people travelling on the boat crowded on one of the sides, which caused it to tilt and capsize,' the service said. 'The transfer of people is the most delicate moment of the operation and, with the vessels being overloaded and with precarious security conditions, the difficulty increases notably.' Alpidio Armas, the head of El Hierro's local government, questioned how the migrants could be saved on the high seas but die in the apparent safety of a port. 'We are doing something wrong,' he told reporters. Each year, Spain takes in tens of thousands of Europe-bound migrants who arrive in the Canary Islands from west Africa, with Malians, Senegalese and Moroccans the most common nationalities. Strong ocean currents and ramshackle vessels make the long crossing dangerous. According to Caminando Fronteras, an NGO, at least 10,457 migrants died or disappeared while trying to reach Spain by sea between Jan 1 and Dec 5 last year. Anselmo Pestana, the central government's representative in the archipelago, explained that the migrants' fatigue complicated the emergency response in the water. 'If the rescue was not immediate, they probably sunk very quickly,' he told journalists. Local authorities have consistently warned of unsustainable pressure on their resources and complained about a lack of solidarity. 'We ask for decisive action from the European Union,' Fernando Clavijo Batlle, the Canary Islands' regional leader, told reporters in La Restinga. 'This is unfortunately what we experience... those who are very far away in offices are incapable of understanding it.' Pedro Sánchez, the Spanish prime minister, wrote on X that the deaths 'should move us all'. 'Lives lost in a desperate attempt to find a better future. We must rise to the occasion. It's a question of humanity,' he said. Almost 47,000 irregular arrivals reached the archipelago last year, breaking the annual record for the second year running, as tighter controls in the Mediterranean pushed migrants to attempt the Atlantic route. But numbers are down so far this year, dropping 34.4 per cent between Jan 1 and May 15 compared with the same period in 2024, according to the latest interior ministry figures.
CTV News
4 days ago
- General
- CTV News
Abandoned boat and 11 bodies found on eastern Caribbean island with Mali passports
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Authorities in the Caribbean country of St. Vincent and the Grenadines say they have discovered an abandoned boat and the remains of 11 people along with passports from the west African country of Mali. The boat was found on the shores of Canouan island in the eastern Caribbean, police said in a statement Tuesday. Authorities said they are working with regional and international partners to identify the victims and the origin of the boat, which was discovered on Monday. 'This incident is deeply concerning,' police said. 'We are committed to pursuing every lead.' In January, officials in the eastern Caribbean island of St. Kitts and Nevis said they found a boat with the bodies of 19 people, some with identifications from Mali. Meanwhile, in May 2021, the bodies of more than a dozen men were found on a boat drifting near the twin-island Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago. An Associated Press investigation found that they were part of a group of 43 people believed to have left Mauritania for Spain's Canary Islands but instead were swept away by the Atlantic Ocean.
Associated Press
4 days ago
- General
- Associated Press
Abandoned boat and 11 bodies found on eastern Caribbean island with Mali passports
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Authorities in the Caribbean country of St. Vincent and the Grenadines say they have discovered an abandoned boat and the remains of 11 people along with passports from the west African country of Mali. The boat was found on the shores of Canouan island in the eastern Caribbean, police said in a statement Tuesday. Authorities said they are working with regional and international partners to identify the victims and the origin of the boat, which was discovered on Monday. 'This incident is deeply concerning,' police said. 'We are committed to pursuing every lead.' In January, officials in the eastern Caribbean island of St. Kitts and Nevis said they found a boat with the bodies of 19 people, some with identifications from Mali. Meanwhile, in May 2021, the bodies of more than a dozen men were found on a boat drifting near the twin-island Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago. An Associated Press investigation found that they were part of a group of 43 people believed to have left Mauritania for Spain's Canary Islands but instead were swept away by the Atlantic Ocean.
Free Malaysia Today
4 days ago
- Health
- Free Malaysia Today
At least 6 dead as migrant boat capsizes near Canary Islands port
Emergency services said a medical helicopter was sent to rescue migrants from the water. (EPA Images pic) MADRID : At least six people died when a migrant boat bound for Spain's Canary Islands capsized off the island of El Hierro as rescuers were escorting it to port, regional emergency services said on Wednesday. The open-topped boat, which according to state broadcaster TVE was laden with around 180 people, went down as it neared La Restinga harbour on El Hierro, the archipelago's smallest island. A spokesperson for the islands' maritime rescue service said a rescue vessel was escorting the boat to the harbour and as it approached, many of its passengers appeared to rush to one side of the precarious vessel, causing it to capsize. TVE live footage showed the boat sinking, throwing migrants – including children – into the water, with many trying to clamber onto the nearby maritime rescue vessel as its crew tossed life preservers to them. A medical helicopter was sent to help emergency personnel pluck migrants from the water, the emergency services said. The number of migrants reaching the Canary Islands from West Africa hit an all-time high in 2024 but the number of arrivals has fallen this year, Interior Ministry data indicate. The Atlantic route is especially dangerous as rough weather can easily capsize the fragile rafts, dugout-like boats and dinghies used by most migrants. In the first five months of 2024, 4,808 people died on the Atlantic voyage to the Canaries after departing from Morocco, Mauritania, Senegal and Gambia, according to migrant rights group Walking Borders.
Al Arabiya
4 days ago
- Health
- Al Arabiya
Migrant boat capsizes in Spain's Canary Islands, six dead
Four women and two girls died after their migrant boat capsized shortly before reaching safety in Spain's Canary Islands on Wednesday, emergency services said, the latest tragedy on the perilous route. Emergency services in the Atlantic archipelago said rescuers supported by a helicopter were working to save people in the port of La Restinga on the island of El Hierro. Spanish media reported at least 150 migrants were on board the boat. Public broadcaster RTVE aired footage of rescuers throwing lifebuoys to people clinging onto an overturned boat and treading water off El Hierro. Emergency services initially confirmed 'the death of two women after the capsizing of a vessel' in La Restinga, and later said 'health services confirm another two dead women.' The services then reported the death of two girls aged five and 16, which meant 'the total number of dead has reached six people', they said on X. A three-year-old boy and a five-year-old girl were being treated after they almost drowned and would be transported by helicopter to a hospital in Tenerife, the largest of the Canary Islands, they added. Four other minors with breathing difficulties were being taken to hospital on El Hierro, the emergency services said. Spain takes in each year tens of thousands of Europe-bound migrants who arrive in the Canary Islands from west Africa, with Mali, Senegal and Morocco the most common nationalities. Strong ocean currents and ramshackle vessels make the long crossing dangerous. According to the NGO Caminando Fronteras, at least 10,457 migrants died or disappeared while trying to reach Spain by sea from January 1 to December 5, 2024. Almost 47,000 irregular arrivals reached the archipelago in 2024, breaking the annual record for the second year running, as tighter controls in the Mediterranean pushed migrants to attempt the Atlantic route. But numbers are down so far this year, dropping 34.4 percent between January 1 and May 15 compared with the same period in 2024, according to the latest interior ministry figures.
